Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) has received increasing attention because it is not only a mild and environmentally friendly oxidant for organic synthesis and environmental remediation but also a promising new liquid fuel. The production of H2O2 by photocatalysis is a sustainable process, since it uses water and oxygen as the source materials and solar light as the energy. Encouraging processes have been developed in the last decade for the photocatalytic production of H2O2. In this Review we summarize research progress in the development of processes for the photocatalytic production of H2O2. After a brief introduction emphasizing the superiorities of the photocatalytic generation of H2O2, the basic principles of establishing an efficient photocatalytic system for generating H2O2 are discussed, highlighting the advanced photocatalysts used. This Review is concluded by a brief summary and outlook for future advances in this emerging research field.

TiO2 nanorods are self‐assembled on the graphene oxide (GO) sheets at the water/toluene interface. The self‐assembled GO–TiO2 nanorod composites (GO–TiO2 NRCs) can be dispersed in water. The effective anchoring of TiO2 nanorods on the whole GO sheets is confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform IR spectroscopy (FTIR), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The significant increase of photocatalytic activity is confirmed by the degradation of methylene blue (MB) under UV light irridiation. The large enhancement of photocatalytic activity is caused by the effective charge anti‐recombination and the effective absorption of MB on GO. The effective charge transfer from TiO2 to GO sheets is confirmed by the significant photoluminescence quenching of TiO2 nanorods, which can effectively prevent the charge recombination during photocatalytic process. The effective absorption of MB on GO is confirmed by the UV‐vis spectra. The degradation rate of MB in the second cycle is faster than that in the first cycle because of the reduction of GO under UV light irradiation.

Freestanding ultrathin rGO membranes, with thicknesses down to 17 nm, are fabricated via a facile approach using hydroiodic acid vapor and water-assisted delamination. These unique membranes provide the potential for addressing the key challenge that limits the performance of current forward osmosis membranes.

We report a large-scale self-etching approach for the synthesis of monodispersed mesoporous F-TiO2 hollow microspheres. The self-etching derived from HF was elucidated by the morphology, chemical composition, and crystal size evolutions from solid to hollow microspheres with the increase in the concentration of H2SO4. The resulting TiO2 hollow microspheres exhibited ease for the concurrent membrane filtration and photocatalysis, providing high potential for engineering application in advanced water treatment, for not only increasing water production but also improving water quality.

Efficient solar steam generation and concurrent salt harvesting from saline water were achieved with both continuous operation and long-term stability.

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In this study, the synthesis of zeolitic imidazole framework (ZIF-8) in water was systematically studied using 6 zinc sources (Zn(OAc) 2 , ZnSO 4 , Zn(NO 3 ) 2 , ZnCl 2 , ZnBr 2 , ZnI 2 ), respectively, under different conditions at room temperature without using any additives. It was found that Zn(OAc) 2 is the best precursor and the resultant ZIF-8 particles have the best quality with rhombic dodecahedron morphology. The concentration of 2-methylimidazole (Hmim), molar ratio Hmim/Zn and water content all have significant impacts on the morphology, particle size, and crystallinity of ZIF-8. Further result analysis reveals that 3 key reactions are involved in the ZIF-8 formation which needs five steps in ZIF-8 structural evolution.This study provides a deep understanding of the crystallization process of ZIF-8 particles in a waterbased system.

Graphene oxide–iron oxide (GO–Fe3O4) nanocomposites were synthesised by co-precipitating iron salts onto GO sheets in basic solution. The results showed that formation of two distinct structures was dependent upon the GO loading. The first structure corresponds to a low GO loading up to 10 wt%, associated with the beneficial intercalation of GO within Fe3O4 nanoparticles and resulting in higher surface area up to 409 m2 g−1. High GO loading beyond 10 wt% led to the aggregation of Fe3O4 nanoparticles and the undesirable stacking of GO sheets. The presence of strong interfacial interactions (Fe-O-C bonds) between both components at low GO loading lead to 20% higher degradation of Acid Orange 7 than the Fe3O4 nanoparticles in heterogeneous Fenton-like reaction. This behaviour was attributed to synergistic structural and functional effect of the combined GO and Fe3O4 nanoparticles.