Cupric porphyrin frameworks on multi-junction silicon photocathodes to expedite the kinetics of CO2 turnover

Zhihe Wei; Qiaoqiao Mu; Ronglei Fan; Yanhui Su; Yongtao Lu; Zhao Deng; Mingrong Shen; Yang Peng

doi:10.1039/D2NR01921C

Cupric porphyrin frameworks on multi-junction silicon photocathodes to expedite the kinetics of CO₂ turnover†

Zhihe Wei,^ab Qiaoqiao Mu,^a Ronglei Fan,

^b Yanhui Su,^a Yongtao Lu,^a Zhao Deng,

^a Mingrong Shen

*^b and Yang Peng

*^a

Author affiliations

* Corresponding authors

^a Soochow Institute of Energy and Material Innovations, College of Energy, Soochow Municipal Laboratory for Lowe Carbon Technoliges and Industries, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006, China
E-mail: mrshen@suda.edu.cn

^b School of Physical Science and Technology, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Thin Films, Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006, China
E-mail: ypeng@suda.edu.cn

Abstract

Photoelectrochemical CO₂ reduction utilizing silicon-based photocathodes offers a promising route to directly store solar energy in chemical bonds, provoking the development of heterogeneous molecular catalysts with high turnover rates. Herein, an in situ surface transformation strategy is adopted to grow metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) on Si-based photocathodes, serving as catalytic scaffolds for boosting both the kinetics and selectivity of CO₂ reduction. Benefitting from the multi-junctional configuration for enhanced charge separation and the porous MOF scaffold enriching redox-active metalloporphyrin sites, the Si photocathode demonstrates a high CO faradaic efficiency of 87% at a photocurrent density of 10.2 mA cm⁻², which is among the best seen for heterogeneous molecular catalysts. This study highlights the exploitation of reticular chemistry and macrocycle complexes as Earth-abundant alternatives for catalyzing artificial photosynthesis.

This article is part of the themed collections: CO2 capture and conversion and 2022 Nanoscale HOT Article Collection

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Article information

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/D2NR01921C
Article type: Communication
Submitted: 07 Apr 2022
Accepted: 31 May 2022
First published: 01 Jun 2022

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Nanoscale, 2022,14, 8906-8913

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Cupric porphyrin frameworks on multi-junction silicon photocathodes to expedite the kinetics of CO₂ turnover

Z. Wei, Q. Mu, R. Fan, Y. Su, Y. Lu, Z. Deng, M. Shen and Y. Peng, Nanoscale, 2022, 14, 8906 DOI: 10.1039/D2NR01921C

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