Oxygen vacancies mediated ultrathin Bi4O5Br2 nanosheets
Bi4O5Br2 is highly attractive as an efficient piezocatalyst that utilizes the ubiquitous mechanical energy for H2O2 synthesis. Oxygen vacancies mediated ultrathin Bi4O5Br2 nanosheets display a better piezoelectric response and stronger adsorption and activation ability of oxygen, leading to an outstanding piezocatalytic H2O2 synthesis performance without any sacrificial agents and co-catalysts in pure water.
Credit: Chinese Journal of Catalysis
… as efficient piezocatalyst for synthesis of H2O2 from pure water.
As an important chemical raw material, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is widely applied in various aspects of industry and life. The industrial anthraquinone method for H2O2 production has the serious flaws, such as high pollution and energy consumption. By using ubiquitous mechanical energy, piezocatalytic H2O2 evolution has been proven as a promising strategy, but its progress is hindered by unsatisfied energy conversion efficiency.
Bi4O5Br2 is regarded as a highly attractive photocatalytic material due to its unique sandwich structure, excellent chemical stability, good visible light capture ability and suitable band structure. Aspired by its non-centrosymmetric crystal structure, piezoelectric performance has begun to enter the vision of researchers recently. However, its potential as an efficient piezocatalyst is far from being exploited, especially the impacts of defects on piezocatalysis and piezocatalytic H2O2 production over Bi4O5Br2 remains scanty. Thus, mechanical energy-driven piezocatalysis provides a promising method for H2O2 synthesis from pure water with great attraction.
Recently, a research group led by Prof. Hongwei Huang from China University of Geosciences reported outstanding piezocatalytic H2O2 evolution performance that was achieved over ultrathin Bi4O5Br2 nanosheets with appropriate oxygen vacancies, and disclosed the mechanism that thin structure and oxygen vacancies collectively enhance the piezocatalytic activity. The results were published in the Chinese Journal of Catalysis (https://doi.org/10.1016/S1872-2067(23)64591-7).
Ultrathin Bi4O5Br2 nanosheets with controllable oxygen vacancy concentrations are synthesized by a one-step solvothermal method by tuning the water to ethylene glycol ratio. Experiments and theoretical calculations have shown that Bi4O5Br2 with appropriate oxygen vacancies exhibits dramatic performance for piezocatalytic H2O2 production. On the one hand, oxygen vacancies and thin structure largely increase the piezoelectric properties and piezoelectric potential of Bi4O5Br2, which improve the separation and transfer of piezoinduced charges. On the other hand, oxygen vacancies promote oxygen adsorption and activation on the surface of Bi4O5Br2, and lead to constantly decreased Gibbs free energy of the reaction pathway. Therefore, the piezocatalytic H2O2 production performance of Bi4O5Br2 with appropriate oxygen vacancies is higher than that of other commonly used piezocatalysts.
This work was jointly supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 52272244 and 51972288), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (2652022202).
About the Journal
Chinese Journal of Catalysis is co-sponsored by Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Chemical Society, and it is currently published by Elsevier group. This monthly journal publishes in English timely contributions of original and rigorously reviewed manuscripts covering all areas of catalysis. The journal publishes Reviews, Accounts, Communications, Articles, Highlights, Perspectives, and Viewpoints of highly scientific values that help understanding and defining of new concepts in both fundamental issues and practical applications of catalysis. Chinese Journal of Catalysis ranks among the top one journals in Applied Chemistry with a current SCI impact factor of 16.5. The Editors-in-Chief are Profs. Can Li and Tao Zhang.
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Journal: Chinese Journal of Catalysis
DOI 10.1016/S1872-2067(23)64591-7
Article Title: Oxygen vacancies mediated ultrathin Bi4O5Br2 nanosheets for efficient piezocatalytic peroxide hydrogen generation in pure water
Article Publication Date: 12-Feb-2024
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