Single-Atom Catalysts for Photocatalytic Reactions

Abstract

Hydrogen and other renewable resources derived by sunlight have attracted great attention to sustainable development. But the photochemical performance of diverse systems is restricted because of the poor efficiency of photon absorption, easy recombination of photogenerated electron–hole pairs, and slow transfer of charge carriers. Single-atom catalysts (SACs), in which isolated atoms are supported on the supports without forming nanoparticles, have received increasing interests in photocatalysis due to the high catalytic activity, selectivity, stability, and 100% atom utilization. In this review, we highlight and introduce recent advances in the preparation method of SACs and concrete examples of single-atom photocatalysts used for the hydrogen evolution from water, overall water splitting, CO2 and N2 reduction reaction. At last, we discuss the underlying mechanisms for photocatalytic performance of single-atom catalysts and the prospects for the development of SACs.

Synthesis of Zn2TiO4@CdS Core‐shell Heteronanostructures by Novel Thermal Decomposition Approach for Photocatalytic Application

“…Worldwide efforts are being made for the use of solar energy for environmental remediation . Photocatalysis has been widely used for environmental remediation and energy production . Sunlight‐driven photocatalytic degradation of dyes is one of the best ways to mineralize toxic dyes into non‐harmful molecules .…”

“…[45][46][47] Photocatalysis has been widely used for environmental remediation and energy production. [48][49][50][51][52] Sunlight-driven photocatalytic degradation of dyes is one of the best ways to mineralize toxic dyes into non-harmful molecules. [53] In the photocatalytic degradation experiments using Zn 2 TiO 4 @CdS core-shell heteronanostructures as the catalyst, monitored by UV-visible spectroscopy, at first, experiments were carried out in which all samples (ZT-5, ZT-10, ZT-20, ZT-40, ZT-60, pure Zn 2 TiO 4 and CdS nanoparticles) were kept in dark for 30 minutes in aqueous solutions of CV for adsorption-desorption equilibrium followed by irradiation in sunlight for 60 minutes.…”

Bimetallic Metal‐Organic Framework Derived ZnO/Ni0.9Zn0.1O Nanocomposites for Improved Photocatalytic Degradation of Organic Dyes

“…At present, numerous metal oxides such as ZnO, [14] CdS, [15] TiO 2 , [16][17][18][19] Bi 2 O 3 , [20] and Fe 2 O 3 , [21] have been investigated for their photocatalytic activities. Besides them, nickle oxide (NiO) is also a promising photocatalyst because of its characteristics of low cost, innocuity, high hole mobility, and high photosensitivity.…”

Rational design of carbon-based metal-free catalysts for electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction: A review

“…Excessive burning of fossil fuels has caused a rapid rise in carbon dioxide (CO 2 , a greenhouse gas) concentration in the atmosphere, which triggers serious environmental concerns [1][2][3] . Developing renewable energy (e.g., solar, tidal, and wind) tech-nology is considered as an ideal solution to simultaneously address both the environmental and energy crisis [4][5][6][7][8][9] . Among various approaches [10][11][12][13] , direct electrochemical CO 2 conversion into chemicals or fuels offers the advantages in renewable energy transformation and storage as well as the reduction in CO 2 emission.…”