Sustainable photocatalytic hydrogen peroxide production over octonary high-entropy oxide
Hao Ling, Huacong Sun, Lisha Lu, Jingkun Zhang, Lei Liao, Jianlin Wang, Xiaowei Zhang, Yingying Lan, Renjie Li, Wengang Lu, Lejuan Cai, Xuedong Bai, Wenlong Wang
Abstract
The direct utilization of solar energy for the artificial photosynthesis of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) provides a reliable approach for producing this high-value green oxidant. Here we report on the utility of high-entropy oxide (HEO) semiconductor as an all-in-one photocatalyst for visible light-driven H2O2 production directly from H2O and atmospheric O2 without the need of any additional cocatalysts or sacrificial agents. This high-entropy photocatalyst contains eight earth-abundant metal elements (Ti/V/Cr/Nb/Mo/W/Al/Cu) homogeneously arranged within a single rutile phase, and the intrinsic chemical complexity along with the presence of a high density of oxygen vacancies endow high-entropy photocatalyst with distinct broadband light harvesting capability. An efficient H2O2 production rate with an apparent quantum yield of 38.8% at 550 nm can be achieved. The high-entropy photocatalyst can be readily assembled into floating artificial leaves for sustained on-site production of H2O2 from open water resources under natural sunlight irradiation. An “all-in-one” high-entropy semiconductor photocatalyst enables the photocatalytic production of H2O2 from H2O and O2 under visible light without any external cocatalysts or sacrificial agents