Cooperative CO2 photoreduction with tailored
organic
synthesis offers a potent avenue for harnessing concurrently generated
electrons and holes, facilitating the creation of both solar fuels
and specialized chemical compounds. However, controlling the crystallization
and morphologies of metal-free molecular nanostructures with exceptional
photocatalytic activities toward CO2 reduction remains
a significant challenge. These hurdles encompass insufficient CO2 activation potential, sluggish multielectron processes, delayed
charge-separation kinetics, inadequate storage of long-lived photoexcitons,
unfavorable thermodynamic conditions, and the precise control of product
selectivity. Here, melem oligomer 2D nanosheets (MNSs) synthesized
through pyrolysis are transformed into 1D nanorods (MNRs) at room
temperature with the simultaneous engineering of vacancies and morphology.
Transient absorption spectral analysis reveals that vacancies in MNRs
trap charges, extending charge carrier lifetimes. Additionally, carbon
vacancies enhance CO2 adsorption by increasing amine functional
centers. The photocatalytic performance of MNRs for CO2 reduction coupled with benzyl alcohol oxidation is approximately
ten times higher (CH3OH and aromatic aldehyde production
rate 27 ± 0.5 and 93 ± 0.5 mmol g–1 h–1, respectively) than for the MNSs (CH3OH
and aromatic aldehyde production rate 2.9 ± 0.5 and 9 ±
0.5 mmol g–1 h–1, respectively).
The CO2 reduction pathway involved the carbon-coordinated
formyl pathway through the formation of *COOH and *CHO intermediates,
as mapped by in situ Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy.
The superior performance of MNRs is attributed to favorable energy-level
alignment, enriched amine surfaces, and unique morphology, enhancing
solar-to-chemical conversion.