Reinforcing oxygen reduction reaction and accelerating charge migration kinetics on In4SnS8 by polypyrrole for photocatalytic hydrogen peroxide production

Liang Zhao; Xinxin Yang; Pan Wu; Dongyun Gui; Mingtao Qiao; Wanying Lei

doi:10.1016/j.jcis.2024.04.016

Reinforcing oxygen reduction reaction and accelerating charge migration kinetics on In₄SnS₈ by polypyrrole for photocatalytic hydrogen peroxide production

J Colloid Interface Sci. 2024 Jul 15:666:47-56. doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2024.04.016. Epub 2024 Apr 3.

Authors

Liang Zhao¹, Xinxin Yang¹, Pan Wu¹, Dongyun Gui¹, Mingtao Qiao², Wanying Lei³

Affiliations

¹ College of Materials Science and Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, PR China.
² College of Materials Science and Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, PR China. Electronic address: mtqiao@xauat.edu.cn.
³ College of Materials Science and Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, PR China. Electronic address: leiwy@xauat.edu.cn.

PMID: 38583209
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2024.04.016

Abstract

Solar light-driven hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) production through the two-electron oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) from the earth-abundant O₂ and water is a potential alternative to the energy-consuming anthraquinone oxidation process, although the activity of the common photocatalysts is still insufficient to satisfy the industrial demands. Poor accessibility of O₂ to surface/interface and fast carrier recombination is the limiting-factor for catalytic systems. Herein, we develop a nanohybrid photocatalysts by introducing 1D conducting polymer of polypyrrole (PPy) nanotube on In₄SnS₈ to promote H₂O₂ evolution under visible light, obtaining up to 254.8 μM in 2 h, which is 2.4- and 13-fold larger than that of individual In₄SnS₈ and PPy. The detailed characterizations of hybrid structure, O₂ adsorption behaviors, charge carrier dynamics over PPy/In₄SnS₈ in conjunction with computational calculations corroborate that the modification of PPy could enlarge the amount of O₂ adsorption amount, expedite the cycle of O₂ adsorption/desorption and accelerate the transportation of electrons from In₄SnS₈ to the interface, eventually speeding up H₂O₂ photoproduction via indirect 2e^- ORR pathway. This work establishes a paradigm of regulating the interfacial microenvironment by polymer for boosting H₂O₂ photogeneration through high selectivity of ORR.

Keywords: Fast charge migration; H2O2 production; Oxygen reduction reaction; PPy/In4SnS8 nanohybrid; Photocatalysis.