Designing 1-nm-Thick MOF Nanosheets with Donor-Acceptor Complexes for Photosynthesis of HO Using Water and Dioxygen Only.

Artificial photosynthesis of hydrogen peroxide (HO) presents a promising environmentally friendly alternative to the industrial anthraquinone process. This work designed ultrathin metal-organic framework (MOF) nanosheets on which porphyrin ligand as an electron donor (D) and anthraquinone (AQ) as an electron acceptor (A) are integrated as the D-A complexes. The porphyrin component allows the MOF nanosheets to absorb full-spectrum solar light while the acceptor AQ motif promotes central aluminum ion coordination, hindering layer stacking to achieve a thickness of 1.

Integrated electrocatalytic synthesis of ammonium nitrate from dilute NO gas on metal organic frameworks-modified gas diffusion electrodes.

The electrocatalytic conversion of NO offers a promising technology for not only removing the air pollutant but also synthesizing valuable chemicals. We design an integrated-electrocatalysis cell featuring metal organic framework (MOF)-modified gas diffusion electrodes for simultaneous capture of NO and generation of NHNO under low-concentration NO flow conditions. Using 2% NO gas, the modified cathode exhibits a higher NH yield and Faradaic efficiency than an unmodified cathode.

MnO-Induced Oxidation of Iodide in Frozen Solution.

Metal oxides play a critical role in the abiotic transformation of iodine species in natural environments. In this study, we investigated iodide oxidation by manganese dioxides (β-MnO, γ-MnO, and δ-MnO) in frozen and aqueous solutions. The heterogeneous reaction produced reactive iodine (RI) in the frozen phase, and the subsequent thawing of the frozen sample induced the gradual transformation of in situ-formed RI to iodate or iodide, depending on the types of manganese dioxides.

A chloroplast structured photocatalyst enabled by microwave synthesis.

Photosynthesis occurs through the synergistic effects of the non-ncontinuously distributed components in the chloroplast. Inspired by nature, we mimic chloroplast and develop a generic approach to synthesize non-continuously distributed semiconductors threaded by carbon nanotubes. In the synthesis, carbon nanotubes serve as microwave antennas to produce local super-hot dots on the surface, which might induce and accelerate various organic/inorganic semiconductors assembly.

Efficient Photocatalytic Fuel Cell via Simultaneous Visible-Photoelectrocatalytic Degradation and Electricity Generation on a Porous Coral-like WO/W Photoelectrode.

Photocatalytic fuel cells (PFCs) have proven to be effective for generating electricity and degrading pollutants with a goal to resolve environmental and energy problems. However, the degradation of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), such as perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), remains challenging. In the present work, a porous coral-like WO/W (PCW) photoelectrode with a well-designed energy band structure was used for the photoelectrocatalytic degradation of POPs and the simultaneous generation of electricity.

Enhanced Photocatalytic Degradation Performance by Fluid-Induced Piezoelectric Field.

The introduction of a piezoelectric field has been proven a promising method to enhance photocatalytic activity by preventing photoelectron-hole recombination. However, the formation of a piezoelectric field requires additional mechanical force or high-frequency ultrasonic baths, which limits its potential application on industrial scale. Therefore, it is of great practical significance to design the catalyst that can harvest the discrete energy such as the fluid mechanical energy to form the electric field.

A Methylthio-Functionalized-MOF Photocatalyst with High Performance for Visible-Light-Driven H Evolution.

Recently, the emergence of photoactive metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) has given great prospects for their applications as photocatalytic materials in visible-light-driven hydrogen evolution. Herein, a highly photoactive visible-light-driven material for H evolution was prepared by introducing methylthio terephthalate into a MOF lattice via solvent-assisted ligand-exchange method. Accordingly, a first methylthio-functionalized porous MOF decorated with Pt co-catalyst for efficient photocatalytic H evolution was achieved, which exhibited a high quantum yield (8.

Photoelectrocatalytic reduction of CO to methanol over a photosystem II-enhanced Cu foam/Si-nanowire system.

A solar-light double illumination photoelectrocatalytic cell (SLDIPEC) was fabricated for autonomous CO reduction and O evolution with the aid of photosystem II (PS-II, an efficient light-driven water-oxidized enzyme from nature) and utilized in a photoanode solution. The proposed SLPEC system was composed of Cu foam as the photoanode and p-Si nanowires (Si-NW) as the photocathode. Under solar irradiation, it exhibited a super-photoelectrocatalytic performance for CO conversion to methanol, with a high evolution rate (41.

Porous CuO nanotubes/graphene with sandwich architecture as high-performance anodes for lithium-ion batteries.

Constructing a porous conductive framework represents a promising strategy for designing high-performance anodes for Li-ion batteries. Here, porous CuO nanotubes/graphene with hierarchical architectures were fabricated by simple annealing of copper nanowires/graphene hybrids synthesized by a microwave-assisted process. In these nanoarchitectures, the embedded porous CuO nanotubes can prevent restacking of the graphene sheets, whereas graphene can increase the electrical conductivity of CuO.