Unveiling the role of carbonate in nickel-based plasmonic core@shell hybrid nanostructure for photocatalytic water splitting

Though carbonates are known for several decades, their role in sun-light driven photocatalysis is still hidden. Herein, carbonate boosted solar water splitting in nickel-based plasmonic hybrid nanostructures is disclosed for the first time via in-situ experiments and density-functional theory (DFT)-based calculations. Ni@NiO/NiCO₃ core@shell (shell consisting of crystalline NiO and amorphous NiCO₃) nanostructure with varying size and compositions are studied for hydrogen production. The visible light absorption at ∼470 nm excludes the possibility of NiO as an active photocatalyst, emphasizing plasmon driven H₂ evolution. Under white light irradiation, higher hydrogen yield of ∼80 µmol/g/h for vacuum annealed sample over pristine (∼50 µmol/g/h) complements the spectroscopic data and DFT results, uncovering amorphous NiCO₃ as an active site for H₂ absorption due to its unique electronic structure. This conclusion also supports the time-resolved photoluminescence results, indicating that the plasmonic electrons originating from Ni are transferred to NiCO₃ via NiO. The H₂ evolution rate can further be enhanced and tuned by the incorporation of NiO between Ni and NiCO₃.