A microwave-induced metal dissolution strategy is developed for in situ synthesis of copper nanowires/ZnS (CuNWs/ZnS) hybrids with core-shell structure. The CuNWs are used as microwave antennas to create local "super-hot" surfaces to further initiate ZnS crystallization with full coverage on CuNWs. With the help of S 2− , the hot metal surface further results in the CuNWs dissolution with promoted Cu + diffusion and incorporation into the ZnS lattice. With the narrowed bandgap of ZnS and the strongly coupled interface between CuNWs and ZnS created by microwaves, the as-prepared hybrid composites exhibit an enhanced activity and stability in visible light for the photocatalytic H 2 evolution. The corresponding H 2 evolution rate reaches up to 10722 µmol h −1 g −1 with apparent quantum efficiency (AQE) of 69% under 420 nm LED irradiation, showing a remarkably high AQE among the noblemetal free visible light-driven photocatalysts and demonstrating a promising potential in practical applications to deal with the energy crisis.
Most photoelectrocatalytic (PEC)
reactions are performed in the
liquid phase for convenient electron transfer in an electrolyte solution.
Herein, a novel PEC reactor involving a tandem combination of TiO2 nanorod array/fluorine-doped tin oxide (TiO2-NR/FTO)
working electrodes and an electrochemical auxiliary cell was constructed
to drive the highly efficient PEC oxidation of indoor gas (NO
x
). With the aid of a low bias voltage (0.3 V),
the as-formed PEC reactor exhibited an 80% removal rate for oxidizing
NO (500 ppb) under light irradiation, which is much higher than that
of the traditional photocatalytic (PC) process. Upon being irradiated
by light, the photogenerated electrons are quickly separated from
the holes and transferred to the counter electrode (Pt) owing to the
applied bias voltage, leaving photogenerated holes in the TiO2-NR/FTO electrode for oxidizing NO molecules. Moreover, both
dry and humid NO could be effectively removed by the tandem TiO2-NR/FTO-based gas-phase PEC reactor, indicating that the NO
molecules could also be directly oxidized by photogenerated holes
in addition to hydroxyl radicals. The presence of trace amounts of
water could promote the PEC oxidation of NO owing to the formation
of hydroxyl radicals induced by reactions between the water and holes,
which could further oxidize NO. This PEC reactor offers an energy-saving,
environmentally friendly, and efficient route to treat air polluted
with low concentrations of gases (NO
x
and
SO
x
).
In article number https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.201900775, Chenliang Su, Dieqing Zhang, Wei Chen, Hexing Li and co‐workers develop a microwave‐induced metal dissolution strategy for synthesizing copper nanowires/ZnS (CuNWs/ZnS) hybrids with a core‐shell structure. The super‐hot surfaces of CuNWs induced by the microwaves ensure the localized crystallization of ZnS which is doped with dissolved Cu+. The hybrids possess strong interfacial coupling and demonstrate a highest H2 evolution rate of 10 722 μmol h−1g−1 among noble‐metal free visible‐light‐driven photocatalysts.
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