Metal-Organic Framework Decorated Cuprous Oxide Nanowires for Long-lived Charges Applied in Selective Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction to CH4

Improving the stability of cuprous oxide (Cu2O) is imperative to its practical applications in artificial photosynthesis. In this work, Cu2O nanowires are encapsulated by metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) of Cu-3(BTC)(2) (BTC=1,3,5-benzene tricarboxylate) using a surfactant-free method. Such MOFs not only suppress the water vapor-induced corrosion of Cu2O but also facilitate charge separation and CO2 uptake, thus resulting in a nanocomposite representing 1.9 times improved activity and stability for selective photocatalytic CO2 reduction into CH4 under mild reaction conditions. Furthermore, direct transfer of photogenerated electrons from the conduction band of Cu2O to the LUMO level of non-excited Cu-3(BTC)(2) has been evidenced by time-resolved photoluminescence. This work proposes an effective strategy for CO2 conversion by a synergy of charge separation and CO2 adsorption, leading to the enhanced photocatalytic reaction when MOFs are integrated with metal oxide photocatalyst.

Automated summary

Encapsulating Cu2O nanowires in metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) enhances activity and stability, facilitates charge separation and CO2 uptake, leading to selective photocatalytic CO2 reduction into CH4. This work demonstrates an effective strategy for CO2 conversion by integrating MOFs with metal oxide photocatalyst.