Photocatalysis induced by light absorption of metal nanoparticles (NPs) has emerged as a promising strategy for exploiting efficient visible-light-responsive composites for solar-energy conversion. In this review, we first introduce the light absorption of metal NPs and the mechanisms proposed in metal-induced photocatalysis (MIP). Then, its applications in water splitting, artificial photosynthesis and inert molecular activation are summarized. To address the challenge of low efficiency in this field, strategies in promoting catalytic activity are reviewed, and particular attention is paid to the particle-size effect of metal. Finally, the challenges and possible development directions of MIP are briefly discussed.

Solar vapor generation represents a promising approach to alleviate water shortage for producing fresh water from undrinkable water resources. Although Cu-based plasmonics have attracted tremendous interest due to efficient light-to-heat conversion, their application faces great challenges in the oxidation resistance of Cu and low evaporation rate. Herein, a hybrid of three-dimensional carbonized loofah sponges and graphene layers encapsulated Cu nanoparticles is successfully synthesized via a facile pyrolysis method. In addition to effective light harvesting, the localized heating effect of stabilized Cu nanoparticles remarkably elevated the surface temperature of Cu@C/CLS to 72 °C, and a vapor generation rate as high as 1.54 kg m–2 h–1 with solar thermal efficiency reaching 90.2% under 1 Sun illumination was achieved. A study in the purification of sewage and muddy water with Cu@C/CLS demonstrates a promising perspective in a practical application. These results may offer a new inspiration for the design of efficient nonprecious Cu-based photothermal materials.

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An ethanol production rate as high as 281.6 μmol g−1 h−1 was achieved during the photocatalytic conversion of CH4 in the presence of O2 at room temperature.

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One-nanometre-thick carbon cage encapsulated copper nanoparticles synthesized through chemical vapour deposition showed remarkable stability in photocatalysis and thermocatalysis.

the development of semiconductor-based photocatalysts that can efficiently split water for durable photocatalytic H 2 production is at the forefront. To date, among numerous photocatalysts that have been demonstrated for H 2 production under exposure to UV and visible light, [4][5][6]56] conjugated graphitic carbon nitride has stood out as one of the most investigated photocatalysts in the past decade owing to the advantages of its suitable energy position for water splitting, visible light harvesting, easy functionalization, and facile preparation from low-cost precursors. [7,55] Nevertheless, pristine g-CN suffers from an exceptionally high charge carrier recombination rate primarily due to the relatively short-lived excited states, such as nascent excitons and shallow trapping states, [8] which results in a low photocatalytic performance. Kinetics studies by ultrafast time-resolved spectroscopy reveal three allowable trapping processes for photoinduced charge carriers in g-CN, including short-lived excitons, shallow trapping states, and deep trapping states. [9,10] Among them, the short-lived excitons and the charges in the shallow trap states play a crucial role in photoactivity enhancement. Hence, increasing the decay lifetime of the excitons and shallow trapping in g-CN are expected to enhance the photocatalytic performance yet less investigated.To date, many strategies have been applied to modulate the photoinduced charge-carrier trapping process in g-CN viaThe relatively short-lived excited states, such as the nascent electron-hole pairs (excitons) and the shallow trapping states, in semiconductor-based photocatalysts produce an exceptionally high charge carrier recombination rate, dominating a low solar-to-fuel performance. Here, a π-conjugated in-plane heterostructure between graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN) and carbon rings (C rings ) (labeling g-CN/C rings ) is effectively synthesized from the thermolysis of melamine-citric acid aggregates via a microwave-assisted heating process. The g-CN/C rings in-plane heterostructure shows remarkably suppressed excited-state decay and increased charge carrier population in photocatalysis. Kinetics analysis from the femtosecond time-resolved transient absorption spectroscopy illustrates that the g-CN/C rings π-conjugated heterostructure produces slower exciton annihilation (τ 1 = 7.9 ps) and longer shallow electron trapping (τ 2 = 407.1 ps) than pristine g-CN (τ 1 = 3.6 ps, τ 2 = 264.1 ps) owing to C rings incorporation, both of which enable more photoinduced electrons to participate in the photocatalytic reactions, thereby realizing photoactivity enhancement. As a result, the photocatalytic activity exhibits an eightfold enhancement in visible-light-driven H 2 generation. This work provides a viable route of constructing π-conjugated in-plane heterostructures to suppress the excited-state decay and improve the photocatalytic performance.