Light-Induced Variation of Lithium Coordination Environment in g-C₃N₄ Nanosheet for Highly Efficient Oxygen Reduction Reactions

Abstract

The structure and electronic state of the active center in a single-atom catalyst undergo noticeable changes during a dynamic catalytic process. The metal atom active center is not well demonstrated in a dynamic manner. This study demonstrated that Li metal atoms, serving as active centers, can migrate on a C 3 N 4 monolayer or between C 3 N 4 monolayers when exposed to light irradiation. This migration alters the local coordination environment of Li in the C 3 N 4 nanosheets, leading to a significant enhancement in photocatalytic activity. The photocatalytic H 2 O 2 process could be maintained for 35 h with a 920 mmol/g record-high yield, corresponding to a 0.4% H 2 O 2 concentration, which is far greater than the value (0.1%) of practical application for wastewater treatment. Density functional theory calculations indicated that dynamic Li-coordinated structures contributed to the superhigh photocatalytic activity.

Directional Electron Transfer in CuInS2/Mo2S3 S-Scheme Heterojunctions for Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production

“…Based on experimental findings, a photocatalytic hydrogen evolution mechanism for CuInS 2 and Mo 2 S 3 is proposed, delineating charge transfer pathways. As shown in Figure , it is believed that the interaction between CuInS 2 and Mo 2 S 3 will form an S-scheme heterojunction, facilitating directional migration of photogenerated charge carriers. , Upon exposure to visible light, eosin Y (EY) adsorbed on the catalyst surface transitions from the ground state to the excited state (EY 1 *), followed by an intersystem crossing (ISC) to form the EY 3 * state. TEOA acts as an electron donor, supplying electrons to EY 3 *, which are then transferred to the catalyst, resulting in the formation of EY – with a strong reducing power .…”

Recent progress in atomically precise metal nanoclusters for photocatalytic application

“…In recent years, more and more attention has been paid to the production of high value-added chemical H 2 O 2 through photocatalytic technology. 84–87 In general, photocatalytic H 2 O 2 production includes two mainstream methods, one is O 2 reduction reaction and the other one is water oxidation reaction. For O 2 reduction to generate H 2 O 2 , it can be classified as two situations: one is the direct pathway involving the one-step two-electron process (O 2 + 2H + + 2e − → H 2 O 2 (+0.68 V vs. NHE)), and the other one is the two-step one-electron indirect pathway (O 2 + e − → ˙O 2 − (−0.33 V vs. NHE); ˙O 2 − + 2H + + e − → H 2 O 2 (+1.44 V vs. NHE)).…”

Highly Efficient 2D/3D Structured CuCo2S4/CdIn2S4 Composites with a p–n Heterojunction for Boosting Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

“…The growing global demand for energy, along with the urgent challenge of environmental pollution, has forced people to explore renewable and clean energy sources. − In the past decades, hydrogen energy has been considered to be a potential alternative to conventional fossil fuels due to the high energy density and environmental compatibility. − As a result, hydrogen production via photocatalytic water splitting has attracted global attention. − Researchers have explored various visible-light-responsive photocatalytic materials for photocatalytic hydrogen production, such as metal oxides, metal sulfides, and organic polymers. , However, among various photocatalytic materials, metal sulfides typically demonstrate a greater efficiency for water splitting.…”