Optically selective catalyst design with minimized thermal emission for facilitating photothermal catalysis
Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: Converting solar energy into fuels is pursued as an attractive route to reduce dependence on fossil fuel. In this context, photothermal catalysis is a very promising approach through converting photons into heat to drive catalytic reactions. There are mainly three key factors that govern the photothermal catalysis performance: maximized solar absorption, minimized thermal emission and excellent catalytic property of catalyst. However, the previous research has focused on improving solar absorption and catalytic performance of catalyst, largely neglected the optimization of thermal emission. Here, we demonstrate an optically selective catalyst based Ti3C2Tx Janus design, that enables minimized thermal emission, maximized solar absorption and good catalytic activity simultaneously, thereby achieving excellent photothermal catalytic performance. When applied to Sabatier reaction and reverse water-gas shift (RWGS) as demonstrations, we obtain an approximately 300% increase in catalytic yield through reducing the thermal emission of catalyst by ~70% under the same irradiation intensity. It is worth noting that the CO2 methanation yield reaches 3317.2 mmol gRu−1 h−1 at light power of 2 W cm−2, setting a performance record among catalysts without active supports. We expect that this design opens up a new pathway for the development of high-performance photothermal catalysts. Photothermal catalysis, which converts photons into heat to drive catalytic reactions, is a highly promising approach. Here, the authors demonstrate an optically selective catalyst based on a Ti3C2Tx Janus design which minimizes thermal emission, maximizes solar absorption, and maintains good catalytic activity, resulting in excellent photothermal catalytic performance.
Source: Nature Communications
Institutions: Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, Nanjing University, Southern University of Science and Technology, Rice University, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics and Physics, State Key Laboratory of Luminescence and Application, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Shaanxi University of Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University
Language: English
Field: Energy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $6,790
Funders: National Natural Science Foundation of China, Government of Jiangsu Province, Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province, Nanjing University, Southeast University, National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, Nanjing University, Wuhan Textile University, National Key Research and Development Program of China, Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities
OpenAlex ID: W4402081741