Guiding the Driving Factors on Plasma Super‐Photothermal S‐Scheme Core‐Shell Nanoreactor to Enhance Photothermal Catalytic H<sub>2</sub> Evolution and Selective CO<sub>2</sub> Reduction
Yawei Xiao, Zhezhe Wang, Bo Yao, Minhua Cao, Yude Wang
Abstract
Abstract Light‐induced heat has a non‐negligible role in photocatalytic reactions. However, it is still challenging to design highly efficient catalysts that can make use of light and thermal energy synergistically. Herein, the study proposes a plasma super‐photothermal S‐scheme heterojunction core‐shell nanoreactor based on manipulation of the driving factors, which consists of α‐Fe 2 O 3 encapsulated by g‐C 3 N 4 modified with gold quantum dots. α‐Fe 2 O 3 can promote carrier spatial separation while also acting as a thermal core to radiate heat to the shell, while Au quantum dots transfer energetic electrons and heat to g‐C 3 N 4 via surface plasmon resonance. Consequently, the catalytic activity of Au/α‐Fe 2 O 3 @g‐C 3 N 4 is significantly improved by internal and external double hot spots, and it shows an H 2 evolution rate of 5762.35 µmol h −1 g −1 , and the selectivity of CO 2 conversion to CH 4 is 91.2%. This work provides an effective strategy to design new plasma photothermal catalysts for the solar‐to‐fuel transition.