Interfacial Charge Modulation via in situ Fabrication of 3D Conductive Platform with MOF Nanoparticles for Photocatalytic Reduction of CO₂

Highly-efficient photocatalytic conversion of CO₂ into valuable carbon-contained chemicals possesses a tremendous potential in solving the energy crisis and global warming problem. However, the inadequate separation of photogenerated electron-hole pairs and the unsatisfied capture of CO₂ stay the chief roadblocks. Herein, we designed a novel photocatalyst for CO₂ reduction by assembling three-dimensional graphene (3D GR) with a typical metal-organic framework material UIO-66-NH₂, aiming to construct a built-in electric field for charge separation as well as taking advantage of the typical 3D structure of GR for maximizing the exposed absorption site on the surface. The performance evaluation demonstrated that the photocatalytic activity has been improved for the composite materials compared with that of the pure UIO-66-NH₂. Further mechanism investigations proved that the enhanced photocatalytic performance is attributed to the synergy of enhanced CO₂ absorption and inhibited photogenerated charge recombination, which could be owing to the better distribution and exposure of absorption and reaction sites on composites, and the redistribution of photogenerated carriers between 3D GR and UIO-66-NH₂. This study provides a promising pathway to probe nanocomposites based on MOFs in environmental improvement and other relevant fields.