Proton‐Coupling Electron Transfer Kinetics Modulation via Substitution Isomerism of Amino Groups in MOFs to Switch CO <sub>2</sub> Photoreduction Pathways from HCOOH to CH <sub>3</sub> COOH

Selective photoreduction of CO<sub>2</sub> into high-value C2 products is highly desirable but challenging due to the high-energy-barrier C-C coupling and sluggish proton-coupling electron transfers (PCET). Herein, CsPbBr<sub>3</sub> (CPB) quantum dots are in-situ encapsulated within amino-functionalized Fe/UiO-67-X (X = meta-NH<sub>2</sub>, ortho-NH<sub>2</sub>, ortho-2NH<sub>2</sub>) frameworks for efficient CO<sub>2</sub> photoreduction. X-ray absorption spectroscopy confirms the presence of charge-asymmetrical ZrFe sites that promote C-C coupling and the covalently-connected Pb-N electron-transfer "bridge" that enhances carrier kinetics. Notably, the o-2NH<sub>2</sub>-functionalized CPB@Fe/UiO-67-o-2NH<sub>2</sub> achieves a CH<sub>3</sub>COOH productivity of 257.22 µmol·g<sup>-1</sup>·h<sup>-1</sup> with 98.72% selectivity, whereas the m-NH<sub>2</sub>-substituted analog (CPB@Fe/UiO-67-m-NH<sub>2</sub>) exclusively produces HCOOH. Comprehensive analyses demonstrate that the o-NH<sub>2</sub> groups facilitate ultrafast electron transfer via a near Pb-N bridge and organize interfacial H<sub>2</sub>O into proton-conducting networks to ensure synchronized proton-supply. In-situ DRIFT and DFT calculations confirm that the o-NH<sub>2</sub>-induced rapid PCETdrives the conversion of <sup>*</sup>COOH at Zr sites to <sup>*</sup>CO, which subsequently couples with stabilized <sup>*</sup>COOH at Fe sites to form the critical <sup>*</sup>OC-COOH with the lowest energy barrier compared to <sup>*</sup>HOOC-COOH or <sup>*</sup>OC-CO pathways. This work establishes a design paradigm that necessitates the "temporal alignment" and "spatial coupling" of H⁺ and e<sup>-</sup> at active sites for achieving high-performance CO<sub>2</sub>-to-C2 photoreduction by modulating interfacial electron-proton dynamics through simple group isomerism.

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Publication Details

Journal
Advanced Materials
Published
2025-09-25
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202512480
Citations
8
Primary Topic
Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
2.91
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article

Proton‐Coupling Electron Transfer Kinetics Modulation via Substitution Isomerism of Amino Groups in MOFs to Switch CO 2 Photoreduction Pathways from HCOOH to CH 3 COOH

Ren Ma, Zhengqiang Xia, Qibin Yang, Sanping Chen et al.
8 citations
Advanced Materials
Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques
2.91
article

Proton‐Coupling Electron Transfer Kinetics Modulation via Substitution Isomerism of Amino Groups in MOFs to Switch CO 2 Photoreduction Pathways from HCOOH to CH 3 COOH

Ren Ma, Zhengqiang Xia, Qibin Yang, Sanping Chen, Gang Xie, Xia Li, Yi-Xia Ren
article en
8 citations

Abstract

Selective photoreduction of CO<sub>2</sub> into high-value C2 products is highly desirable but challenging due to the high-energy-barrier C-C coupling and sluggish proton-coupling electron transfers (PCET). Herein, CsPbBr<sub>3</sub> (CPB) quantum dots are in-situ encapsulated within amino-functionalized Fe/UiO-67-X (X = meta-NH<sub>2</sub>, ortho-NH<sub>2</sub>, ortho-2NH<sub>2</sub>) frameworks for efficient CO<sub>2</sub> photoreduction. X-ray absorption spectroscopy confirms the presence of charge-asymmetrical ZrFe sites that promote C-C coupling and the covalently-connected Pb-N electron-transfer "bridge" that enhances carrier kinetics. Notably, the o-2NH<sub>2</sub>-functionalized CPB@Fe/UiO-67-o-2NH<sub>2</sub> achieves a CH<sub>3</sub>COOH productivity of 257.22 µmol·g<sup>-1</sup>·h<sup>-1</sup> with 98.72% selectivity, whereas the m-NH<sub>2</sub>-substituted analog (CPB@Fe/UiO-67-m-NH<sub>2</sub>) exclusively produces HCOOH. Comprehensive analyses demonstrate that the o-NH<sub>2</sub> groups facilitate ultrafast electron transfer via a near Pb-N bridge and organize interfacial H<sub>2</sub>O into proton-conducting networks to ensure synchronized proton-supply. In-situ DRIFT and DFT calculations confirm that the o-NH<sub>2</sub>-induced rapid PCETdrives the conversion of <sup>*</sup>COOH at Zr sites to <sup>*</sup>CO, which subsequently couples with stabilized <sup>*</sup>COOH at Fe sites to form the critical <sup>*</sup>OC-COOH with the lowest energy barrier compared to <sup>*</sup>HOOC-COOH or <sup>*</sup>OC-CO pathways. This work establishes a design paradigm that necessitates the "temporal alignment" and "spatial coupling" of H⁺ and e<sup>-</sup> at active sites for achieving high-performance CO<sub>2</sub>-to-C2 photoreduction by modulating interfacial electron-proton dynamics through simple group isomerism.

Advanced MaterialsVol. 38(3)
Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China (CN), Xi'an Shiyou University (CN), Northwest University (CN), Yan'an University (CN)
Openalex Percentile: Top 8%
Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques
2.91
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