Composition Directed Generation of Reactive Oxygen Species in Irradiated Mixed Metal Sulfides Correlated with Their Photocatalytic Activities

The ability of nanostructures to facilitate the generation of reactive oxygen species and charge carriers underlies many of their chemical and biological activities. Elucidating which factors are essential and how these influence the production of various active intermediates is fundamental to understanding potential applications of these nanostructures, as well as potential risks. Using electron spin resonance spectroscopy coupled with spin trapping and spin labeling techniques, we assessed 3 mixed metal sulfides of varying compositions for their abilities to generate reactive oxygen species, photogenerate electrons, and consume oxygen during photoirradiation. We found these irradiated mixed metal sulfides exhibited composition dependent generation of ROS: ZnIn2S4 can generate .OH, O-2(-.) and O-1(2); CdIn2S4 can produce O-2(-.) and O-1(2), while AgInS2 only produces O-2(-.). Our characterizations of the reactivity of the photogenerated electrons and consumption of dissolved oxygen, performed using spin labeling, showed the same trend in activity: ZnIn2S4 > CdIn2S4 > AgInS2. These intrinsic abilities to generate ROS and the reactivity of charge carriers correlated closely with the photocatalytic degradation and photoassisted antibacterial activities of these nanomaterials.