Carbon nitride caught in the act of artificial photosynthesis
Abstract Covalent semiconductors of the carbon nitride family are among the most promising systems to realize “artificial photosynthesis”, that is exploiting synthetic materials which use sunlight as an energy source to split water into its elements or converting CO2 into added value chemicals. Howe...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-55518-x |
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| _version_ | 1841559283668353024 |
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| author | Daniel Cruz Sonia Żółtowska Oleksandr Savateev Markus Antonietti Paolo Giusto |
| author_facet | Daniel Cruz Sonia Żółtowska Oleksandr Savateev Markus Antonietti Paolo Giusto |
| author_sort | Daniel Cruz |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Covalent semiconductors of the carbon nitride family are among the most promising systems to realize “artificial photosynthesis”, that is exploiting synthetic materials which use sunlight as an energy source to split water into its elements or converting CO2 into added value chemicals. However, the role of surface interactions and electronic properties on the reaction mechanism remain still elusive. Here, we use in-situ spectroscopic techniques that enable monitoring surface interactions in carbon nitride under artificial photosynthetic conditions. We show that the water adsorption and light illumination cause changes of the surface electron density, which activate the photocatalyst and enable the water splitting process. Our results reveal critical details on the photocatalytic mechanism, which proceeds through proton-coupled electron transfer, and provide key information to design more efficient photocatalyst for artificial photosynthesis. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-5dd7c6719618475299d0de38394da5ec |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-5dd7c6719618475299d0de38394da5ec2025-01-05T12:37:57ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-01-011611710.1038/s41467-024-55518-xCarbon nitride caught in the act of artificial photosynthesisDaniel Cruz0Sonia Żółtowska1Oleksandr Savateev2Markus Antonietti3Paolo Giusto4Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, Department of Inorganic ChemistryMax Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Colloid Chemistry DepartmentMax Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Colloid Chemistry DepartmentMax Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Colloid Chemistry DepartmentMax Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Colloid Chemistry DepartmentAbstract Covalent semiconductors of the carbon nitride family are among the most promising systems to realize “artificial photosynthesis”, that is exploiting synthetic materials which use sunlight as an energy source to split water into its elements or converting CO2 into added value chemicals. However, the role of surface interactions and electronic properties on the reaction mechanism remain still elusive. Here, we use in-situ spectroscopic techniques that enable monitoring surface interactions in carbon nitride under artificial photosynthetic conditions. We show that the water adsorption and light illumination cause changes of the surface electron density, which activate the photocatalyst and enable the water splitting process. Our results reveal critical details on the photocatalytic mechanism, which proceeds through proton-coupled electron transfer, and provide key information to design more efficient photocatalyst for artificial photosynthesis.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-55518-x |
| spellingShingle | Daniel Cruz Sonia Żółtowska Oleksandr Savateev Markus Antonietti Paolo Giusto Carbon nitride caught in the act of artificial photosynthesis Nature Communications |
| title | Carbon nitride caught in the act of artificial photosynthesis |
| title_full | Carbon nitride caught in the act of artificial photosynthesis |
| title_fullStr | Carbon nitride caught in the act of artificial photosynthesis |
| title_full_unstemmed | Carbon nitride caught in the act of artificial photosynthesis |
| title_short | Carbon nitride caught in the act of artificial photosynthesis |
| title_sort | carbon nitride caught in the act of artificial photosynthesis |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-55518-x |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT danielcruz carbonnitridecaughtintheactofartificialphotosynthesis AT soniazołtowska carbonnitridecaughtintheactofartificialphotosynthesis AT oleksandrsavateev carbonnitridecaughtintheactofartificialphotosynthesis AT markusantonietti carbonnitridecaughtintheactofartificialphotosynthesis AT paologiusto carbonnitridecaughtintheactofartificialphotosynthesis |