Photocatalytic Oxygen Transfer as an Innovative Route for N <sub>2</sub> O Upgrading**
Oriane Delaunay, Eya Zghab, Audrey Denicourt‐Nowicki, Alain Roucoux
Abstract
Abstract As concentration of nitrous oxide (N 2 O) keeps growing steeply in the atmosphere, upgrading this anthropogenic greenhouse gas as a potential oxygen transfer agent constitutes a real challenge to limit global warming and ozone layer depletion. Decomposition of N 2 O is mainly described under highly energy‐consuming thermal activation, owing to its high stability and large activation barrier, making it kinetically inert. Herein, we demonstrate the controlled photocatalytic upgrading of N 2 O as an oxygen atom donor, releasing only dinitrogen (N 2 ) as a benign co‐product. The doped Ag@TiO 2 photocatalyst specifically activates N 2 O for controlled oxidation of phosphines avoiding mineralization, under mild conditions (room temperature, 1 atm, λ=365 nm), as a proof‐of‐concept of the valorization of N 2 O as an oxygen transfer agent. The catalytic system is active and selective in various organic solvents, as well as innovatively in water, depending on the phosphine structure.