02674nas a2200265   4500008004100000022001400041245011200055210006900167260007700236300001200313490000600325520169700331653002802028653001302056653002502069653001902094653002002113100003302133700002502166700001602191700001502207700002702222700003002249856012902279       2014                        eng d  a1867-388000aDisordered mesoporous TiO2-xNx+Nano-Au: an electronically integrated nanocomposite for solar H-2 generation0 aDisordered mesoporous TiO2xNxNanoAu an electronically integrated  aBOSCHSTRASSE 12, D-69469 WEINHEIM, GERMANYbWILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBHcFEB  a522-5300 v63 a<p>We report on H-2 generation by photocatalysis driven by simulated white light by electronically integrated Au nanoparticles with multifunctional, disordered mesoporous TiO2-xNx (Au-NT) nanocomposites. Solar H-2 generation (1.5 mmolh(-1)g(-1)) from aqueous methanol has been demonstrated with Au-NT nanocomposites. The water splitting activity of Au-NT is attributed to the 21.1 ps lifetime of charge carriers observed from fluorescence lifetime measurements, which indicates a high electron-injection efficiency from nano-Au to the conduction band of TiO2, and hence charge separation as well as utilization. This is directly supported by the observation of a high photoluminescence emission intensity with Au-NT that highlights the energy transfer from nano-Au to TiO2. The p-n heterojunction observed between the Au (001) and TiO2 (101) facets helps to-wards the higher charge separation and their utilization. A low mesochannel depth (&lt; 10 nm) associated with disordered mesoporous TiO2-xNx helps the charge carriers to move towards the surface for redox reactions and hence charge utilization. Visible-light absorption, as a result of the surface plasmon resonance of nano-Au, is observed in a broad range between 500 and 750 nm, which helps in harvesting visible-light photons. Finally, electronically integrated nano-Au with TiO2-xNx in Au-NT is evident from Raman and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements. All of these factors help to achieve a high rate of H-2 production. It is likely that a higher rate of H-2 production than that reported here is feasible by strategically locating Au clusters in porous TiO2 to generate hot spots through electronic integration.</p>10aheterogeneous catalysis10aHydrogen10amesoporous materials10aphotochemistry10awater splitting1 aSivaranjani, Kumarsrinivasan1 aRajaambal, Sivaraman1 aDas, Tanmay1 aRoy, Kanak1 aBhattacharyya, Somnath1 aGopinath, Chinnakonda, S.  uhttps://library.ncl.res.in/content/disordered-mesoporous-tio2-xnxnano-au-electronically-integrated-nanocomposite-solar-h-2-0