Copper-mediated metal-organic framework as efficient photocatalyst for the partial oxidation of aromatic alcohols under visible-light irradiation: Synergism of plasmonic effect and schottky junction

• Published in: Applied catalysis. B, Environmental Vol. 248; pp. 380 - 387
• Main Authors: Xiao, Liang, Zhang, Qi, Chen, Peng, Chen, Lang, Ding, Feng, Tang, Jie, Li, You-Ji, Au, Chak-Tong, Yin, Shuang-Feng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 05.07.2019; Elsevier BV
• Subjects: Alcohol; Alcohols; Catalytic activity; Copper; Cu-MOF schottky junction; Encapsulation; Irradiation; Light irradiation; Metal-organic framework; Metal-organic frameworks; Metals; Nanoparticles; Noble metals; Noble-metal-free; Oxidation; Photocatalysis; Porous materials; Quantum dots; Radiation; Surface plasmon resonance; Synergism; Metal-organic framework; Surface plasmon resonance; Cu-MOF schottky junction; Photocatalysis; Noble-metal-free
• ISSN: 0926-3373; 1873-3883
• DOI: 10.1016/j.apcatb.2019.02.012

Cu-modified MOF, Cu/Cu@UiO-66, is prepared via an “advanced double-solvent approach” followed by one-step reduction. The strategy is used to simultaneously create two kinds of Cu moieties that show synergy of surface plasmon resonance and Cu–MOF Schottky junction. With such strategic loading of Cu, Cu/Cu@UiO-66 shows enhanced photocatalytic activity towards the partial oxidation of benzyl alcohol under visible light irradiation. [Display omitted] •For the first time, Cu/Cu@UiO-66 with Cu deposited on and encapsulated in UiO-66 is synthesized.•Enhanced photocatalytic activity for partial oxidation of aromatic alcohols using O2 is observed.•Using Cu alone, integration of surface plasmon resonance and Schottky junction is achieved.•The transfer mechanism of photogenerated electrons in Cu/Cu@UiO-66 is studied in detail.•Cu/Cu@UiO-66 performances superior to that of UiO-66 loaded with an equal amount of Ag. Metal-organic framework (MOF) is one of the most promising porous materials in photocatalysis. In this study, copper was deposited on as well as encapsulated in a semiconductor-like MOF (UiO-66) to fabricate the Cu/Cu@UiO-66 catalyst via an advanced double-solvent approach followed by one-step reduction. Even with ultralow amount of copper, Cu/Cu@UiO-66 shows significantly enhanced photocatalytic activity as well as stability for partial oxidation of aromatic alcohols under visible light irradiation. The result is attributed to the integration of plasmonic effect (Cu nanoparticles on UiO-66) and Schottky junction (Cu quantum dots encapsulated in UiO-66) which can be considered as a promising noble-metal-free way for the enhancement of visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity of MOFs.