Engineered fibrous materials toward solar fuel production and environmental remediation

Abstract Photocatalytic solar fuel production through the conversion of solar energy into chemical energy by the use of a suitable photocatalyst is of considerable interest as an ideal candidate for the replacement of fossil fuels. Moreover, combining photocatalytic degradation of contaminants in industrial wastewater with solar fuel production is important from the economical point of view. This chapter provides an overview of the photocatalytic solar fuel production by particulate semiconductor photocatalysts, basic principles, and the recent advances in the development of new photocatalysts and modification methods for enhancing the yield of the fuel gas generation and photocatalytic activities. The potential of using a fibrous-based substrate for immobilizing the photocatalysts is also highlighted by proposing a recent case study. We believe that functional fibrous substrates will be good candidates for the future photocatalytic environmental and energy-related applications due to their promising flexibility, light-weight, sustainability, and stability.