Molecular modulation of interfaces in a Z-scheme van der Waals heterojunction for highly efficient photocatalytic CO2 reduction

Sharafat Ali; Sajjad Ali; Imran Khan; Muhammad Zahid; Pir Muhammad Ismail; Ahmed Ismail; Amir Zada; Rizwan Ullah; Salman Hayat; Haider Ali; Muhammad Rizwan Kamal; Khuloud A Alibrahim; Mohamed Bououdina; Syedul Hasnain Bakhtiar; Xiaoqiang Wu; Qingyuan Wang; Fazal Raziq; Liang Qiao

doi:10.1016/j.jcis.2024.02.081

Molecular modulation of interfaces in a Z-scheme van der Waals heterojunction for highly efficient photocatalytic CO₂ reduction

J Colloid Interface Sci. 2024 Jun:663:31-42. doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2024.02.081. Epub 2024 Feb 13.

Authors

Sharafat Ali¹, Sajjad Ali², Imran Khan³, Muhammad Zahid⁴, Pir Muhammad Ismail⁴, Ahmed Ismail⁴, Amir Zada⁵, Rizwan Ullah⁴, Salman Hayat⁴, Haider Ali⁴, Muhammad Rizwan Kamal⁴, Khuloud A Alibrahim⁶, Mohamed Bououdina², Syedul Hasnain Bakhtiar⁷, Xiaoqiang Wu⁸, Qingyuan Wang⁹, Fazal Raziq¹⁰, Liang Qiao¹¹

Affiliations

¹ Yangtze Delta Region Institute (Huzhou), University of Electronic Science and Technology, Huzhou 313001, China; School of Physics, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610054, China.
² Energy, Water, and Environment Lab, College of Humanities and Sciences, Prince Sultan University, Riyadh 11586, Saudi Arabia.
³ School of Physics and Electronics, Central South University, 410083 Changsha, China.
⁴ School of Physics, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610054, China.
⁵ Department of Chemistry, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 23200, Pakistan.
⁶ Department of Chemistry, College of Science, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University,Riyadh 11671, Saudi Arabia.
⁷ School of Integrated Circuits, Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, Engineering Research Center for Functional Ceramics of the Ministry of Education, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China.
⁸ School of Mechanical Engineering, Chengdu University, Chengdu 610106, China.
⁹ Institute for Advanced Study, Chengdu University, Chengdu, China. Electronic address: wangqy@cdu.edu.cn.
¹⁰ School of Physics, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610054, China. Electronic address: fazal.raziq@uestc.edu.cn.
¹¹ Yangtze Delta Region Institute (Huzhou), University of Electronic Science and Technology, Huzhou 313001, China; School of Physics, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610054, China. Electronic address: liang.qiao@uestc.edu.cn.

PMID: 38387184
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2024.02.081

Abstract

The construction of van der Waals (vdW) heterojunctions is a key approach for efficient and stable photocatalysts, attracting marvellous attention due to their capacity to enhance interfacial charge separation/transfer and offer reactive sites. However, when a vdW heterojunction is made through an ex-situ assembly, electron transmission faces notable obstacles at the components interface due to the substantial spacing and potential barrier. Herein, we present a novel strategy to address this challenge via wet chemistry by synthesizing a functionalized graphene-modulated Z-scheme vdW heterojunction of zinc phthalocyanine/tungsten trioxide (xZnPc/yG-WO₃). The functionalized G-modulation forms an electron "bridge" across the ZnPc/WO₃ interface to improve electron transfer, get rid of barriers, and ultimately facilitating the optimal transfer of excited photoelectrons from WO₃ to ZnPc. The Zn²⁺ in ZnPc picks up these excited photoelectrons, turning CO₂ into CO/CH₄ (42/22 μmol.g^-1.h^-1) to deliver 17-times better efficiency than pure WO₃. Therefore, the introduction of a molecular "bridge" as a means to establish an electron transfer conduit represents an innovative approach to fabricate efficient photocatalysts designed for the conversion of CO₂ into valued yields.

Keywords: CO(2) Reduction; Electron Bridge; Graphene-Modulation; Photocatalysis; Z-Scheme Van Der Waals Heterojunction.