Boosting multi-hole water oxidation catalysis on hematite photoanodes under low bias

The accumulation of multiple surface holes is considered to be the key to efficient photoelectrochemical(PEC)water oxidation.Previous PEC water oxidation studies commonly apply high potentials(>1.2 VRHE)to achieve this key.But how to complete multi-hole transfer under low bias(<1.2 VRHE)remains unknown.Herein,we find that,on a typical visible-light photoanode,hematite(α-Fe_(2)O_(3)),UV excitation plays a indispensable role in driving multi-hole water oxidation under low bias.Compared with the visible-light excitation,the UV excitation promotes the formation of adjacent surface-trapped holes onα-Fe_(2)O_(3) at 0.9VRHE,thereby increasing the reaction order of surface holes from~1 to~2 and improving the PEC water oxidation activity by one order of magnitude.The UV irradiation reduces the formation probability of self-trapped excitons and results in~3 to 5-fold increase of surface holes.These advantages enable the UV excitation to contribute about 40%to the total photocurrent under 1 solar illumination,even though its energy only occupies 6%of the incident light.This mechanism is also applicable to boost selective two-hole oxidation of thioether at 0.1 VFc/Fc+and nitrite at 0.9 VRHE.

Solar-driven green synthesis of epoxides

Epoxides are one of the most important intermediates used in the production of valuable chemicals. Traditional preparation methods often rely on hazardous oxidants or extensive fossil fuel-powered thermal catalytic systems, resulting in significant waste production and CO_(2) emissions. Solar-driven photo(electro)chemistry is an emerging option for achieving the environmentally-friendly synthesis of epoxides. In this review, we firstly summarize the fundamental understanding of epoxidation reactions among various systems, including molecular catalysis, heterogeneous thermal catalysis and electrocatalysis. Then, we focus on the recent advances in the synthesis of epoxides achieved by photo(electro)chemical approaches. This review is concluded by the rational design of photoelectrochemical systems towards efficient epoxide synthesis.