A bioinspired floatable system with a 3D sandwich-type triphase interface for highly efficient nitrogen fixation

Abstract

Photocatalytic nitrogen fixation is an ecologically friendly technique for synthesizing ammonia, and a key factor in the improvement of efficiency is the effective mass transfer of nitrogen and water simultaneously....

Smart three-phase interface heterojunctions for effective photo(electro)catalytic N2 reduction to ammonia

“…3a). 21 The superhydrophobic character of these plants arises from the combination of a sufficient roughness of the leaf surface and its chemical composition. Surface roughness reduces the contact area between water droplets and leaf, making water roll over the surface without wetting; whereas its surface chemical composition contains low surface energy chemical compounds ( i.e.…”

Bioinspired Material for High-Performance Photocatalytic Systems

“…In 2023, inspired by Pistia, whose hydrophobic leaves float on the air−water surface to collect sunlight and oxygen while freely suspended hydrophilic roots transport water and nutrients, we have prepared a floatable photocatalytic system with a 3D sandwich-type triphase interface by selecting BiVO 4 as a model photocatalyst and anchoring it on PDMS-modified Janus melamine sponge (BiVO 4 @PDMS@MS) with a Pistia-like structure. 116 The bioinspired sandwich-type triphase system, in which N 2 and H 2 O reach the reaction active sites via separate diffusion pathways in opposite directions, effectively ensures mass transfer of N 2 and H 2 O simultaneously, ensuring photocatalytic nitrogen fixation performance improvement in dynamics (Figure 10c). What's more, the triphase interface is constructed above the water surface, which results in higher light intensity that can be practically absorbed, enhancing light utilization (Figure 10d).…”

“…(c) Schematic illustration of BiVO 4 @PDMS@MS for reactant mass transfer and (d) the mechanism for photocatalytic nitrogen fixation. Reproduced with permission from ref . Copyright 2023, RSC.…”