Tungsten oxide has wide range of crystal types and sub-stoichiometric composition, the multi-functional transition metal oxide with innate tunnels and oxygen vacancies. Tungsten trioxide (WO₃) is a versatile material, and widely used in many important areas because of its flexible structure and cation insertion state, particularly in coloration devices; In addition, tungsten trioxide is also used as a photocatalyst to capture solar energy for environmental purification and fuel production, to provide a new strategy to solve the energy and environmental crises.

 

Recently, researcher of Suzhou Institute of Nano has developed tungsten oxide which can be used in photoelectric field, and published articles about it. 

 

Tungsten oxide uses in photoelectric field, and some of the latest research progress about its applications are as following:

1. Pt-WO₃ as a visible driven photocatalyst, its removal rate about gaseous acetaldehyde is higher than both commercial WO3 and N-doped titanium dioxide;

2. The process for preparing Pt loaded WO₃ nanotubes diagram is as follows;

 

3. WO₃ octahedral with acidified surface exhibits excellent photocatalytic reduction activity to the heavy metal ions;

4. Tungsten oxide catalysts with different content of oxygen vacancies will result in the large difference of methane yield under the different illumination time, wherein the tungsten trioxide with no oxygen vacancies has no activity in this reaction which indicates that it is oxygen vacancies which cause tungsten trioxide has reduction activity;

5. The energy level alignment of oxygen defects of tungsten oxide nanosheets shows that the enhanced light trapping capability of ultraviolet visible to near-infrared region will cause the increasing of photocurrent of tungsten oxide nanosheets;

6. The ECD coloration efficiency comparison of nano sheet and chunk WO₃•2H₂O showed that ECD coloration efficiency based on the nano-sheet is much greater than that which based on chunk WO₃•2H₂O;

7. Al³⁺ as the inserted ion of the main body--purple tungsten oxide (W₁₈O₄₉), has high contrast and good stability of ECD.