Chlorophyll-Inspired Zinc-Phthalocyanine Nanodot Assembled g-C₃N₄ Composite for Efficient Visible-Light-Driven H₂O₂ Production

Designing nanophotocatalysts with high photoreaction and efficient charge separation capability remains a major challenge. Inspired by the photochemical catalytic ability of natural chlorophyll, a zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc) nanodot assembled graphitic carbon nitride composite (CN/ZnPc/CN) was designed. A four-arm cationic ZnPc molecule with a similar chlorophyll chemical structure was designed and prepared. The cationic ZnPc can self-assemble into nanodots by supramolecular π-π stacking. The ZnPc nanodots were embedded between two layers of g-C₃N₄ sheets. The carbon nitride composite assembled with ZnPc nanodots like chlorophyll can greatly improve the light-harvesting and charge-separation ability of the CN/ZnPc/CN material. Also, it greatly boosted the generation of the superoxide radical (^•O₂^-). The H₂O₂ production of CN/ZnPc/CN2 was 114.00 μmol·L^-1·h^-1, which was 10 times of that of pure CN. The new strategy and nanostructure inspired by chlorophyll provide a new platform in the field of efficient photochemical synthesis and energy conversion.