Carbon Nanoparticles as Visible-Light Photocatalysts for Efficient CO_2 Conversion and Beyond

摘要

Increasing atmospheric CO_2 levels have generated much concern, driving the ongoing carbon sequestration effort. A compelling CO_2 sequestration option is its photocatalytic conversion to hydrocarbons, for which the use of solar irradiation represents an ultimate solution. Here we report a new strategy of using surface-functiona-lized small carbon nanoparticles to harvest visible photons for subsequent charge separation on the particle surface in order to drive the efficient photocatalytic process. The aqueous solubility of the catalysts enables photoreduction under more desirable homogeneous reaction conditions. Beyond CO_2 conversion, the nanoscale carbon-based photocatalysts are also useful for the photogeneration of H_2 from water under similar conditions.