Tailoring Photocatalytic Materials Through Defect Engineering: Control, Mechanism, and Experimental Protocols

Defect engineering in photocatalytic materials has been regarded as a research topic of great interest in the recent years. It has led to the development of highly efficient photocatalysts for several implementations, including water splitting for hydrogen production, ammonia synthesis, environmental remediation (i.e., wastewater remediation and gaseous pollutants reduction), biological field, etc. However, the challenges lie in precisely controlling the defects to achieve the desired modifications without introducing detrimental effects that could impede the overall performance of the reported photocatalytic feedstocks. This chapter presents knowledge about some examples of defective photocatalytic materials. The control of chemical structures and morphologies is deeply studied utilizing various characterization techniques. It also presents the mechanisms of defect formation, including band gap engineering, charge carrier separation and transfer, concentration of defects, defect–interface interactions, photostability, etc., highlighting the importance of defect engineering in photocatalytic feedstocks for enhancing their efficiency in numerous applications.