Noble-metal-free plasmonic MoO3−-based S-scheme heterojunction for photocatalytic dehydrogenation of benzyl alcohol to storable H2 fuel and benzaldehyde

Simultaneous generation of H2 fuel and value-added chemicals has attracted increasing attention since the photogenerated electrons holes can be both employed to convert solar light into chemical energy. Herein, for realizing UV-visible-NIR driven dehydrogenation benzyl alcohol (BA) benzaldehydes (BAD) H2, a novel localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) enhanced S-scheme heterojunction was designed by combining noble-metal-free MoO3–x as oxidation semiconductor Zn0.1Cd0.9S reduction semiconductor. The photoredox system Zn0.1Cd0.9S/MoO3–x displayed an unconventional reaction model, in which BA served electron donor acceptor. charge transfer mechanism induced formed internal electric field redox ability carriers thermodynamically boosted separation kinetically. Moreover, due LSPR effect MoO3−x nanosheets, Zn0.1Cd0.9S/MoO3−x photocatalysts exhibited strong absorption region full spectrum. Therefore, composite generated BAD simultaneously via selective with high production (34.38 33.83 mmol·g−1 BAD, respectively) upon illumination. Even under NIR irradiation, rate could up 94.5 mmol·g−1·h−1. In addition, effective photocatalytic evolution 149.2 mmol·g−1·h−1 from water, approximate 6 times that pure Zn0.1Cd0.9S. This work provides reference rational design plasmonic coproduction high-value production.