Energy
and mass transfer in photocatalytic systems plays a significant
role in photocatalytic water splitting, but relevant research has
long been ignored. Here, an interfacial photocatalytic mode for photocatalytic
hydrogen production is exploited to optimize the energy and mass flows
and mainly includes a heat-insulating layer, a water-channel layer,
and a photothermal photocatalytic layer. In this mode, the energy
flow is optimized for efficient spreading, conversion, and utilization.
A low-loss path (ultrathin water film) and an efficient heat localized
zone are constructed, where light energy, especially infrared-light
energy, can transfer to the target functional membrane surface with
low loss and the thermal energy converted from light can be localized
for further use. Meanwhile, the optimization of the mass flow is achieved
by improving the desorption capacity of the products. The generated
hydrogen bubbles can rapidly leave from the surface of the photocatalyst,
along with the active sites being released timely. Consequently, the
photocatalytic hydrogen production rate can be increased up to about
6.6 times that in a conventional photocatalytic mode. From the system
design aspect, this work provides an efficient strategy to improve
the performance of photocatalytic water splitting by optimizing the
energy and mass flows.