Kshirsagar Switi Dattatraya, Shelake Sandip Prabhakar, Biswas Bapan, Ramesh Kanaparthi, Gaur Rashmi, Abraham B Moses, Sainath Annadanam V Sesha, Pal Ujjwal
Department of Energy & Environmental Engineering, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad, 500007, India.
Polymers and Functional Materials and Fluoro-Agrochemicals Department, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Uppal Road, Hyderabad, 500007, India.
Small. 2024 Dec;20(50):e2407318. doi: 10.1002/smll.202407318. Epub 2024 Oct 4.
Carbon recycling is poised to emerge as a prominent trend for mitigating severe climate change and meeting the rising demand for energy. Converting carbon dioxide (CO) into green energy and valuable feedstocks through photocatalytic CO reduction (PCCR) offers a promising solution to global warming and energy needs. Among all semiconductors, zinc oxide (ZnO) has garnered considerable interest due to its ecofriendly nature, biocompatibility, abundance, exceptional semiconducting and optical properties, cost-effectiveness, easy synthesis, and durability. This review thoroughly discusses recent advances in mechanistic insights, fundamental principles, experimental parameters, and modulation of ZnO catalysts for direct PCCR to C products (methanol). Various ZnO modification techniques are explored, including atomic size regulation, synthesis strategies, morphology manipulation, doping with cocatalysts, defect engineering, incorporation of plasmonic metals, and single atom modulation to boost its photocatalytic performance. Additionally, the review highlights the importance of photoreactor design, reactor types, geometries, operating modes, and phases. Future research endeavors should prioritize the development of cost-effective catalyst immobilization methods for solid-liquid separation and catalyst recycling, while emphasizing the use of abundant and non-toxic materials to ensure environmental sustainability and economic viability. Finally, the review outlines key challenges and proposes novel directions for further enhancing ZnO-based photocatalytic CO conversion processes.
碳循环有望成为缓解严重气候变化和满足不断增长的能源需求的一个突出趋势。通过光催化二氧化碳还原（PCCR）将二氧化碳（CO₂）转化为绿色能源和有价值的原料，为全球变暖和能源需求提供了一个有前景的解决方案。在所有半导体中，氧化锌（ZnO）因其生态友好的性质、生物相容性、丰富性、优异的半导体和光学性能、成本效益、易于合成以及耐久性而备受关注。本文综述全面讨论了用于直接将PCCR转化为C产物（甲醇）的ZnO催化剂在机理见解、基本原理、实验参数和调控方面的最新进展。探索了各种ZnO改性技术，包括原子尺寸调控、合成策略、形貌操纵、助催化剂掺杂、缺陷工程、等离子体金属掺入以及单原子调控，以提高其光催化性能。此外，综述强调了光反应器设计、反应器类型、几何形状、操作模式和相的重要性。未来的研究应优先开发用于固液分离和催化剂循环的经济高效的催化剂固定方法，同时强调使用丰富且无毒的材料，以确保环境可持续性和经济可行性。最后，综述概述了关键挑战，并提出了进一步增强基于ZnO的光催化CO₂转化过程的新方向。
