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Zuo C, Su Q, Yu L. Research Progress in Composite Materials for Photocatalytic Nitrogen Fixation. Molecules 2023; 28:7277. [PMID: 37959696 PMCID: PMC10650292 DOI: 10.3390/molecules28217277] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2023] [Revised: 10/17/2023] [Accepted: 10/24/2023] [Indexed: 11/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Ammonia is an essential component of modern chemical products and the building unit of natural life molecules. The Haber-Bosch (H-B) process is mainly used in the ammonia synthesis process in the industry. In this process, nitrogen and hydrogen react to produce ammonia with metal catalysts under high temperatures and pressure. However, the H-B process consumes a lot of energy and simultaneously emits greenhouse gases. In the "double carbon" effect, to promote the combination of photocatalytic technology and artificial nitrogen fixation, the development of green synthetic reactions has been widely discussed. Using an inexhaustible supply of sunlight as a power source, researchers have used photocatalysts to reduce nitrogen to ammonia, which is energy-dense and easy to store and transport. This process completes the conversion from light energy to chemical energy. At the same time, it achieves zero carbon emissions, reducing energy consumption and environmental pollution in industrial ammonia synthesis from the source. The application of photocatalytic technology in the nitrogen cycle has become one of the research hotspots in the new energy field. This article provides a classification of and an introduction to nitrogen-fixing photocatalysts reported in recent years and prospects the future development trends in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Lei Yu
- College of Chemistry & Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Weifang University, Weifang 261061, China; (C.Z.); (Q.S.)
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Yang Y, Jia H, Su S, Zhang Y, Zhao M, Li J, Ruan Q, Zhang CY. A Pd-based plasmonic photocatalyst for nitrogen fixation through an antenna-reactor mechanism. Chem Sci 2023; 14:10953-10961. [PMID: 37829007 PMCID: PMC10566465 DOI: 10.1039/d3sc02862c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2023] [Accepted: 09/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Plasmonic metal nanocrystals (e.g., Au, Ag, and Cu) hold great promise for driving photocatalytic reactions, but little is known about the plasmonic properties of Pd nanocrystals. Herein, we constructed a plasmonic Pd/Ru antenna-reactor photocatalyst through the controllable growth of a Ru nanoarray 'reactor' on a Pd nano-octahedron 'antenna' and demonstrated a plasmonic Pd-driven N2 photofixation process. The plasmonic properties of Pd nano-octahedrons were verified using finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations and refractive index sensitivity tests in water-glycerol mixtures. Notably, the constructed plasmonic antenna-reactor nanostructures exhibited superior photocatalytic activities during N2 photofixation, with a maximum ammonia production rate of 117.5 ± 15.0 μmol g-1 h-1 under visible and near-infrared (NIR) light illumination. The mechanism can be attributed to the ability of the plasmonic Pd nanoantennas to harvest light to generate abundant hot electrons and the Ru nanoreactors to provide active sites for adsorption and activation of N2. This work paves the way for the development of Pd-based plasmonic photocatalysts for efficient N2 photofixation and sheds new light on the optimal design and construction of antenna-reactor nanostructures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuanyuan Yang
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Shandong Normal University Jinan 250014 China
| | - Henglei Jia
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Shandong Normal University Jinan 250014 China
| | - Sihua Su
- Ministry of Industry and Information Technology Key Lab of Micro-Nano Optoelectronic Information Systems, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Semiconductor Optoelectronic Materials and Intelligent Photonic Systems, Harbin Institute of Technology Shenzhen 518055 China
| | - Yidi Zhang
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Shandong Normal University Jinan 250014 China
| | - Mengxuan Zhao
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Shandong Normal University Jinan 250014 China
| | - Jingzhao Li
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Shandong Normal University Jinan 250014 China
| | - Qifeng Ruan
- Ministry of Industry and Information Technology Key Lab of Micro-Nano Optoelectronic Information Systems, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Semiconductor Optoelectronic Materials and Intelligent Photonic Systems, Harbin Institute of Technology Shenzhen 518055 China
| | - Chun-Yang Zhang
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Shandong Normal University Jinan 250014 China
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Southeast University Nanjing 211189 China
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Jia H, Li F, Yang Y, Zhao M, Li J, Zhang CY. Steric hindrance-induced selective growth of rhodium on gold nanobipyramids for plasmon-enhanced nitrogen fixation. Chem Sci 2023; 14:5656-5664. [PMID: 37265735 PMCID: PMC10231337 DOI: 10.1039/d3sc00081h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2023] [Accepted: 04/30/2023] [Indexed: 06/03/2023] Open
Abstract
The construction of an antenna-reactor plasmonic photocatalyst that is composed of a plasmonic and a catalytically active metal holds great promise in driving N2 photofixation, but its photocatalytic performance is highly dependent on the spatial distribution of the two components. Up to now, the fabrication of dumbbell-shaped nanostructures featuring spatially separated architecture has remained challenging. Herein, we develop a facile synthetic strategy for the site-selective growth of a Rh nanocrystal 'reactor' on two tips of an Au nanobipyramid (NBP) 'antenna' through the precise manipulation of steric hindrance toward Rh overgrowth. The obtained Au NBP/tip-Rh nanodumbbells (Au NBP/tip-Rh NDs) can function as an excellent antenna-reactor plasmonic photocatalyst for N2 photofixation. In this scenario, the Au nanoantenna harvests light and generates hot electrons under plasmon resonance, meanwhile the hot electrons are transferred to the active sites on Rh nanocrystals for N2 reduction. In comparison with that of classical core@shell nanostructures, the spatially separated architecture of the Au NBP/tip-Rh NDs facilitates charge separation, greatly improving the photocatalytic activity. This study sheds new light on the structure-function relationship for N2 photofixation and benefits the design and construction of spatially separated plasmonic photocatalysts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henglei Jia
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Shandong Normal University Jinan 250014 China
| | - Fan Li
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Shandong Normal University Jinan 250014 China
| | - Yuanyuan Yang
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Shandong Normal University Jinan 250014 China
| | - Mengxuan Zhao
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Shandong Normal University Jinan 250014 China
| | - Jingzhao Li
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Shandong Normal University Jinan 250014 China
| | - Chun-Yang Zhang
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Shandong Normal University Jinan 250014 China
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Southeast University Nanjing 211189 China
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Jiang W, Low BQL, Long R, Low J, Loh H, Tang KY, Chai CHT, Zhu H, Zhu H, Li Z, Loh XJ, Xiong Y, Ye E. Active Site Engineering on Plasmonic Nanostructures for Efficient Photocatalysis. ACS NANO 2023; 17:4193-4229. [PMID: 36802513 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.2c12314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Plasmonic nanostructures have shown immense potential in photocatalysis because of their distinct photochemical properties associated with tunable photoresponses and strong light-matter interactions. The introduction of highly active sites is essential to fully exploit the potential of plasmonic nanostructures in photocatalysis, considering the inferior intrinsic activities of typical plasmonic metals. This review focuses on active site-engineered plasmonic nanostructures with enhanced photocatalytic performance, wherein the active sites are classified into four types (i.e., metallic sites, defect sites, ligand-grafted sites, and interface sites). The synergy between active sites and plasmonic nanostructures in photocatalysis is discussed in detail after briefly introducing the material synthesis and characterization methods. Active sites can promote the coupling of solar energy harvested by plasmonic metal to catalytic reactions in the form of local electromagnetic fields, hot carriers, and photothermal heating. Moreover, efficient energy coupling potentially regulates the reaction pathway by facilitating the excited state formation of reactants, changing the status of active sites, and creating additional active sites using photoexcited plasmonic metals. Afterward, the application of active site-engineered plasmonic nanostructures in emerging photocatalytic reactions is summarized. Finally, a summary and perspective of the existing challenges and future opportunities are presented. This review aims to deliver some insights into plasmonic photocatalysis from the perspective of active sites, expediting the discovery of high-performance plasmonic photocatalysts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenbin Jiang
- Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Republic of Singapore
| | - Beverly Qian Ling Low
- Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Republic of Singapore
| | - Ran Long
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, China
| | - Jingxiang Low
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, China
| | - Hongyi Loh
- Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Republic of Singapore
| | - Karen Yuanting Tang
- Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Republic of Singapore
| | - Casandra Hui Teng Chai
- Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Republic of Singapore
| | - Houjuan Zhu
- Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Republic of Singapore
| | - Hui Zhu
- Department of Chemistry, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117543, Republic of Singapore
| | - Zibiao Li
- Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Republic of Singapore
- Institute of Sustainability for Chemicals, Energy and Environment (ISCE2), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Republic of Singapore
| | - Xian Jun Loh
- Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Republic of Singapore
- Institute of Sustainability for Chemicals, Energy and Environment (ISCE2), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Republic of Singapore
| | - Yujie Xiong
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, China
| | - Enyi Ye
- Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Republic of Singapore
- Institute of Sustainability for Chemicals, Energy and Environment (ISCE2), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Republic of Singapore
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