Photocatalytic and Photoelectrochemical Carbon Dioxide Reduction

The increasing number of devastating environmental disasters in recent years is ascribed to a changing climate due the steady increase concentration carbon dioxide atmosphere. With this mind, search for ways recycle and transform CO2 into more useful products has received significant attention become an issue global concern. activation is, however, very energy intensive endeavor use renewable source, such as sunlight, basic requirement. Strategies that aim at harnessing sunlight produce fuels or chemicals are often assigned large research field “artificial photosynthesis”. Within it was realized direct utilization electrical impractical because its intrinsic intermittency fluctuating intensity. Thus, converting light chemical bond highly desirable sustainable future fuel economy. transformation different C1 building blocks, monoxide, formic acid, methanol methane, compounds with higher atoms, all have their significance industrial applications. Sunlight can either be applied directly indirectly via photovoltaic device activate CO2. While indirect application actually reducing topic problem electrocatalysis, roughly divided homogeneous heterogenous catalytic methods some interesting developments hybrid systems. Molecular compounds, well-defined structure, enable in-depth mechanistic studies deduction structure–activity relationships, which several presented Special Collection. On other hand, solid-state materials stand out robustness stability, although they usually show poor product selectivity. Nevertheless, obtained from systems incorporating reduced forms Cn (with n>1), attractive further downstream processes. As novel synthetic development, systems, molecular catalyst fixed on (most often) semiconducting surface, merge advantages both worlds, examples also provided within collection. In summary, Collection value-added by using clean source presented. articles reviews provide insight existing state-of-the-art molecular, We hope interested readers will take work stimulation inspiration design photocatalytic photoelectrochemical well solar conversion storage. There still need improve stability selectivity, ensure continuation efforts achieve circular process. Any achievements undoubtedly play important role society, economy science future. Matthias Schwalbe studied chemistry Jena (Germany) Glasgow (UK). After postdoctoral stay MIT, Cambridge (USA), he started his independent career Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin 2010. His major interest metal complexes small molecules, particular O2, testing electro- Hongwei Huang Professor School Materials Science Technology, China University Geosciences (Beijing, China). current mainly focuses preparation polar semiconductor photocatalysts Gonghu Li currently Chemistry New Hampshire (USA). involves applications surface catalysis conversion. Recent projects group include single atom catalysts reduction.