College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Soochow University , Suzhou 215123, People's Republic of China.
School of Chemistry and Environment, Beihang University , Beijing 100191, People's Republic of China.
J Am Chem Soc. 2017 Sep 13;139(36):12402-12405. doi: 10.1021/jacs.7b07187. Epub 2017 Aug 30.
Semiconductor photocatalysis has long been considered as a promising approach for water pollution remediation. However, limited by the recombination of electrons and holes, low kinetics of photocatalysts and slow reaction rate impede large-scale applications. Herein, we addressed this limitation by developing a triphase photocatalytic system in which a photocatalytic reaction is carried out at air-liquid-solid joint interfaces. Such a triphase system allows the rapid delivery of oxygen, a natural electron scavenger, from air to the reaction interface. This enables the efficient removal of photogenerated electrons from the photocatalyst surface and minimization of electron-hole recombination even at high light intensities, thereby resulting in an approximate 10-fold enhancement in the photocatalytic reaction rate as compared to a conventional liquid/solid diphase system. The triphase system appears an enabling platform for understanding and maximizing photocatalyst kinetics, aiding in the application of semiconductor photocatalysis.
半导体光催化长期以来被认为是一种很有前途的水污染修复方法。然而，由于电子和空穴的复合、光催化剂的动力学有限以及反应速率缓慢，限制了其大规模应用。在此，我们通过开发三相光催化系统来解决这一限制，其中在气-液-固联合界面上进行光催化反应。这样的三相系统允许氧气（一种天然的电子捕获剂）从空气中快速输送到反应界面。这使得光生电子能够从光催化剂表面有效去除，即使在高光强下，电子-空穴复合也最小化，从而使光催化反应速率提高了近 10 倍，与传统的液/固二相系统相比。三相系统为理解和最大化光催化剂动力学提供了一个可行的平台，有助于半导体光催化的应用。
