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Osaka team develops new solar-to-hydrogen catalyst that uses broader spectrum of light

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The three-part composite maximizes both absorbing light and its efficiency for water splitting. Finally, the gold-covered LTO is mixed with ultrathin sheets of the element black phosphorus (BP), which acts as a light absorber. The band gap properties are promising because of broad solar light absorption from UV to NIR region.

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Berkeley Lab solar-to-fuel system for CO2 to ethanol and ethylene; light-powered production of fuel via artificial photosynthesis

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This new work, described in a study published in the journal Energy and Environmental Science , is the first to successfully demonstrate the approach of going from carbon dioxide directly to target products—ethanol and ethylene—at energy conversion efficiencies rivaling natural counterparts. —Gurudayal et al. Earlier post.).

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Cambridge team demonstrates light-driven photoreforming of unprocessed biomass to H2 at room temperature

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A team of scientists at the University of Cambridge has reported the light-driven photoreforming of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin to H 2 using semiconducting cadmium sulfide quantum dots in alkaline aqueous solution. CdS is an inexpensive, visible-light-absorbing photocatalyst with a bulk electronic bandgap of around 2.4

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Light over heat: UV-driven rhodium nanoparticles catalyze conversion of CO2 to methane

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Duke University researchers have engineered rhodium nanoparticles that can harness the energy in ultraviolet light and use it to catalyze the conversion of carbon dioxide to methane, a key building block for many types of fuels. So we get to choose how the reaction goes with light in a way that we can’t do with heat.

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New mesocrystal photocatalyst enhances light-driven hydrogen production

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When light is applied to photocatalysts, electrons and holes are produced on the surface of the catalyst; hydrogen is obtained when these electrons reduce the hydrogen ions in water. As a result, it has a more efficient conversion rate for producing hydrogen than conventional nanoparticulate photocatalysts.

Light 150
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Elemental boron effective photothermocatalyst for the conversion of CO2 for fuels and chemicals

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Researchers in Japan and China developed an efficient method for CO 2 reduction over elemental boron catalysts in the presence of only water and light irradiation through a photothermocatalytic process. A paper on their work is published in the journal Angewandte Chemie. When the sun shines on a surface, it is heated. —Jinhua Ye.

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Japan team reports pathway to green ammonia: photocatalytic conversion of nitrogen with water

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Researchers in Japan report that a commercially available TiO 2 with a large number of surface oxygen vacancies, when photo-irradiated by UV light in pure water with nitrogen—successfully produces ammonia (NH 3 ). Photocatalytic nitrogen reduction is an attractive pathway because it can use light energy, the team pointed out.

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