The
effective separation of photogenerated carriers plays a vital
role in photocatalytic reactions. In addition to the intrinsic driving
force of photocatalysis, an external field generating an enhancement
effect can provide extra energy to the photocatalytic system, acting
as an additional impetus to separate photogenerated charges and thus
improving the overall catalytic efficiency. Under the favorable noncontact
conditions, exploring the effect of the external field, different
from pure photocatalysis or photoelectrocatalysis, could widen the
applications of photocatalysis technology. In this review, four typical
noncontact external fields (i.e., thermal, magnetic, microwave, and
ultrasonic fields) and their coupling effects on photocatalysis are
summarized. Specifically, the review focuses on the mechanism and
characteristics of each external field’s synergistic effect
and their coupling effects on the performance of the catalytic system.
The charge separation driving forces provided by the noncontact external
field and the traditional one are distinguished and defined for the
first time. The challenges and future prospects of noncontact external-field-driven
photocatalysis are discussed. We hope that this review will provide
a reference for the research and development of external-field-assisted
photocatalysis and give insights for the in-depth study of external-field-coupling-enhanced
photocatalysis toward improvement of the catalytic efficiency.
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