BDC-Zn MOF sensitization by MO/MB adsorption for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution under solar light

In this work, a new semicrystalline MOF synthesized from terephthalic acid and zinc nitrate is described, as well as an integral characterization of its physicochemical properties. BDC-Zn was evaluated in three applications: Methyl orange (MO) and Methyl Blue (MO) adsorption/photocatalytic degradation and H-2 evolution. MO presents the best adsorption result; with a maximum adsorption capacity of 2100 mg/g, which is higher than all the MOF's reported in the literature. For H-2 evolution, the activity was enhanced 24 times in photocatalyst with MO adsorbed, and 27 times for the MB adsorbed (from 47 to 1148 and 1259 mu mol/gh, respectively). This result is attributed to better light adsorption and a decrease in charge recombination.