Photocatalysis articles within Nature Materials

Featured

  • Article |

    Developing active and stable atomically dispersed catalysts is challenging because of weak non-specific interactions between catalytically active metal atoms and supports. A general method for synthesizing these catalysts via photochemical defect tuning for controlling oxygen-vacancy dynamics is proposed.

    • Chan Woo Lee
    • , Byoung-Hoon Lee
    •  & Taeghwan Hyeon

  • Article |

    The partial oxidation of CH4 to CH3OH is challenging to perform in artificial systems due to ready over-oxidation to CO and CO2. Here by confining mono-iron hydroxyl sites in a metal–organic framework, photo-oxidation of CH4 to CH3OH is achieved with high selectivity and time yield.

    • Bing An
    • , Zhe Li
    •  & Martin Schröder

  • Letter |

    Photoelectrochemical devices are used for direct solar fuel production, but the stability of light absorbers can hamper their commercial prospects. Integrating a BiOI light absorber into a robust oxide-based architecture with a graphite paste conductive encapsulant results in photocathodes with long-term H2 evolution activity.

    • Virgil Andrei
    • , Robert A. Jagt
    •  & Erwin Reisner

  • Article |

    In anisotropically shaped photocatalyst particles different constituent facets may form inter-facet junctions at their adjoining edges. Using multimodal functional imaging, inter-facet junction effects on anisotropically shaped bismuth vanadate particles are revealed.

    • Xianwen Mao
    •  & Peng Chen

  • Why it Matters |

    Tebello Nyokong, Bokolombe Ngoy and Edith Amuhaya share their experiences in conducting research in Africa.

    • Tebello Nyokong
    • , Bokolombe P. Ngoy
    •  & Edith K. Amuhaya

  • Article |

    Metallic nanoparticles used to harvest energy from a light source typically result in reduced chemical reaction temperature. Endothermic reactions requiring higher activation energy can now be initiated at room temperature using localized surface plasmons in the deep-UV range.

    • Canhui Wang
    • , Wei-Chang D. Yang
    •  & Renu Sharma

  • Article |

    Although nanocatalysts forming selective contacts are crucial in photoelectrochemistry, the underlying nanoscale interfaces are poorly understood. Using a n-Si/Ni photoanode and potential-sensing AFM, interfacial electron-transfer processes and photovoltage are measured.

    • Forrest A. L. Laskowski
    • , Sebastian Z. Oener
    •  & Shannon W. Boettcher

  • Letter |

    The instability of sulfide ions during water oxidation prevents simultaneous evolution of hydrogen and oxygen. An oxysulfide semiconductor photocatalyst, Y2Ti2O5S2, is shown to evolve H2 and O2 via a water-splitting reaction under visible-light irradiation.

    • Qian Wang
    • , Mamiko Nakabayashi
    •  & Kazunari Domen

  • Article |

    Reversible and cooperative activation processes are important characteristics of biological enzymes and can be used in designing catalysts. Highly active TiO2 photocatalysts incorporated with site-specific single copper atoms are now shown to exhibit such a photoactivation process.

    • Byoung-Hoon Lee
    • , Sunghak Park
    •  & Taeghwan Hyeon

  • News & Views |

    Multiscale modelling provides atomic-level insights into how oxygen vacancy defect nucleation leads to the formation of the visible light photocatalyst black titania.

    • Vassiliki-Alexandra Glezakou
    •  & Roger Rousseau

  • Editorial |

    Large-scale, environmentally friendly hydrogen production will rely on steam methane reforming coupled with carbon capture and electrolysis, but solar fuels could have a disruptive role to play.

  • Article |

    TiO2 and other metal oxides were interfaced with molecular boron clusters to form a hybrid material. This modifies the electrochemical and photocatalytic properties, enabling fast electron transfer and dye degradation under red light.

    • Dahee Jung
    • , Liban M. A. Saleh
    •  & Alexander M. Spokoyny

  • Article |

    Solar water splitting is promising for hydrogen production and solar energy storage, but for large-scale utilization cost must be reduced. A membrane-free approach in separate oxygen and hydrogen cells brings water splitting closer to applications.

    • Avigail Landman
    • , Hen Dotan
    •  & Avner Rothschild

  • Review Article |

    Optically excited plasmonic nanoparticles can activate chemical reactions on their surfaces. The underlying physical mechanisms responsible for the chemical activity and advances in photocatalysis on plasmonic metallic nanostructures are discussed.

    • Suljo Linic
    • , Umar Aslam
    •  & Matthew Morabito

  • Letter |

    Visible-light-responsive photocatalysts can directly harvest energy from solar light. Stable conducting polymer nanostructures show high photocatalytic activity under visible light without using sacrificial reagents or precious metal co-catalysts.

    • Srabanti Ghosh
    • , Natalie A. Kouamé
    •  & Hynd Remita

  • Article |

    Photoelectrochemical water-splitting devices require integrating electrocatalysts with light-absorbing semiconductors, but understanding charge-transfer processes at interfaces has proved difficult. Ion-permeable electrocatalysts deposited onto TiO2 photoelectrodes now result in adaptive semiconductor/electrocatalyst junctions where both the effective interface barrier height and the photovoltage output change depending on the oxidation state of the electrocatalyst.

    • Fuding Lin
    •  & Shannon W. Boettcher

  • Letter |

    A convincing explanation of why mixed phases of anatase and rutile TiO2 outperform individual polymorphs is lacking. An energetic band alignment of ~0.4 eV is now shown to exist between the two phases with anatase possessing the higher electron affinity. This observation explains the separation of photoexcited charge carriers between phases and could lead to improved photocatalysts.

    • David O. Scanlon
    • , Charles W. Dunnill
    •  & Alexey A. Sokol

  • News & Views |

    Photoexcited diamond can inject highly energetic electrons in solution and promote the catalysis of a broad range of chemical reactions.

    • Christoph E. Nebel

  • Article |

    Solid-state catalysts do not participate efficiently in the reduction of N2 to NH3 because they tend not to form strong bonds with nitrogen molecules. It is now shown that, under ultraviolet radiation, hydrogen-terminated diamond can eject electrons directly in a liquid solution, thus allowing nitrogen reduction without requiring its preliminary adsorption on a solid surface.

    • Di Zhu
    • , Linghong Zhang
    •  & Robert J. Hamers

  • Article |

    It is now shown that, unlike most semiconductors, plasmonic metal nanostructures constructively couple the energy of photons and thermal energy, with the reaction rate positively responding to both stimuli. These unique characteristics suggest that these photocatalysts could prove useful for heterogeneous catalytic processes that cannot be activated using conventional thermal processes on metals or photocatalytic processes on semiconductors.

    • Phillip Christopher
    • , Hongliang Xin
    •  & Suljo Linic

  • Letter |

    Light absorption across the bandgap in semiconductors is exploited in many important applications such as photovoltaics, light-emitting diodes and photocatalytic conversion, but whether coloured metals can be used in such applications is unclear. A red metallic oxide Sr1-xNbO3 is now shown to be effective under visible light to photocatalyse the oxidation of methylene blue, and the oxidation and reduction of water.

    • Xiaoxiang Xu
    • , Chamnan Randorn
    •  & John T. S. Irvine

  • Review Article |

    Although heterogeneous photocatalysts for converting solar to chemical energy are mostly semiconductors, metallic plasmonic nanostructures have started to attract interest. Recent progress on plasmon-enhanced, water-splitting composite photocatalysts and photocatalytic reactions on the surface of plasmonic nanostructures of noble metals are now reviewed.

    • Suljo Linic
    • , Phillip Christopher
    •  & David B. Ingram

  • Article |

    Production of chemical fuels by solar energy is an attractive and sustainable solution to our energy problems. A highly active photocathode, consisting of electrodeposited cuprous oxide with platinum nanoparticles is now activated for hydrogen evolution resulting from photelectrochemical water reduction.

    • Adriana Paracchino
    • , Vincent Laporte
    •  & Elijah Thimsen

  • Letter |

    The search for active semiconductor photocatalysts that split water directly under visible-light irradiation remains challenging for solar applications. An orthophosphate semiconductor, Ag3PO4, which is capable of harnessing visible light to oxidize water as well as decompose organic contaminants in aqueous solution is now reported.

    • Zhiguo Yi
    • , Jinhua Ye
    •  & Ray L. Withers

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