Engineering metal/metal oxide nanoparticles for photocatalytic carbon dioxide reduction

Abstract

The reduction and conversion of CO2 into valuable products has been an interesting research arena since the 1970s. To date, academia has made tremendous progress in dealing with the global warming caused by the excessive emissions of CO2 due to anthropogenic activities. The main issue concerning the conversion of CO2 is the thermodynamic stability and kinetic inertness. Therefore, a variety of methods and strategies have already been documented in numerous review articles and book chapters. The present chapter contributes to the progress in the photocatalytic reduction of CO2 on metal/metal oxide nanoparticles and their composite materials. Moreover, the basic photocatalytic principles, requirements of the photocatalyst and further exploration of the different catalysts are provided in detail.