Recent advances in photocatalytic hydrogen peroxide production

Abstract

Hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), an environmental-friendly oxidant and renewable liquid fuel, has received wide attention in various research and industrial fields. Current industrial production of H₂O₂ relies on the anthraquinone method, which is hardly viewed as a sustainable and green process. Photocatalysis, harnessing solar energy as the driving force for redox reactions, provides a green and promising approach for H₂O₂ production. However, due to the poor ability of light absorption, fast recombination of carriers, and poor intrinsic activity of active sites of pristine photocatalysts, photocatalytic H₂O₂ production cannot provide great yield. Thus, great efforts have been dedicated to design efficient photocatalysts for photosynthesis of H₂O₂ in the past decades. In this review, we summarize significant progress in the development of advanced photocatalytic materials for light-driven H₂O₂ production. Starting with a brief introduction on basic principles and advantages of photosynthesis of H₂O₂, the representative materials are classified and discussed in detail; finally, a brief outlook on addressing future challenges and opportunities of photocatalytic H₂O₂ production is proposed. This review aims to confirm current challenges and research developments in the photosynthesis of H₂O₂ and provide inspiration for the development of high-efficiency photocatalysts for photocatalytic H₂O₂ production in the future.

Keywords

hydrogen peroxide / photocatalysis / photocatalysts

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2023 2023 The Authors. PhotoMat published by University of Shanghai for Science and Technology and Wiley-VCH GmbH.