Quasi-In Situ Synthesis of Ag NPs@m-MIL-100(Fe) for the Enhanced Photocatalytic Elimination of Flowing Xylenes
Zixia Tang, Hong Tao, Xiao Wang, Lu Chen, Chi Song, Guanhong Lu, Xiaofeng Xie, Jing Sun
Abstract
The implantation of metal nanoparticles (MNPs) into metal–organic framework (MOF) hosts is a promising means to prepare high-performance photocatalysts for the degradation of gas pollutants. However, the uniform encapsulation of MNPs in MOFs is still challenging. Herein, a facile “quasi-in situ” encapsulation method is proposed by utilizing the spatial confinement effect of the colloidal network formed during the synthesis of the MIL-100(Fe) monolith [noted as m-MIL-100(Fe)]. Highly dispersed Ag NPs with an average diameter of ∼2 nm are encapsulated in the MIL-100(Fe) monolith to form a unique “watermelon-seed” structure, which ensures the large contact area between the two components and protects Ag NPs from being oxidized. The fast charge transfer between m-MIL-100(Fe) and Ag NPs enables the spatial separation of electron–hole pairs and promotes the generation of oxidative radicals. Compared with pristine m-MIL-100(Fe), the 0.2 wt % Ag@m-MIL-100(Fe) composite shows obviously enhanced photodegradation efficiencies for flowing o-xylene under both xenon (∼97%) and visible light (∼80.0%) with high stability. This work not only provides a promising Ag@m-MIL-100(Fe) material for eliminating air pollutants but also gives a versatile means for the design and synthesis of nanoparticles@MOFs composites with desired performance.