Multiscale Active Site Modulation in Organic Heterojunction with Molecular‐Level Interfacial Contact for Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

ABSTRACT The commercialization of green hydrogen production through organic photocatalyst‐promoted solar water splitting for hydrogen evolution is limited by inefficient charge separation and sluggish interfacial kinetics. Herein, this problem is addressed using an ice template–assisted photochemical reduction strategy that integrates molecular‐level interfacial contact between a trefoil‐shaped donor–acceptor molecule (DTAB) and ultrathin carbon nitride nanosheets (UCNS) with Cu single atoms (SAs) anchoring and Pt nanodots (NDs) deposition. The intimate interface in the resulting DTAB–UCNS/CuPt photocatalyst generates a built‐in electric field promoting the separation of photogenerated carriers. The DTAB harvests visible light and injects electrons into UCNS, with these electrons subsequently funneled to Pt NDs via Cu SAs. The electronic coupling between Cu SAs and Pt NDs affects the position of the Pt d ‐band, thus optimizing the H* adsorption/desorption equilibrium and enhancing surface reaction kinetics. The hydrogen evolution rate of DTAB–UCNS/CuPt (261.16 mmol g −1 h −1 ) is 248.7 times higher than that of UCNS/Pt (1.05 mmol g −1 h −1 ) and ranks among the highest reported for carbon nitride–based photocatalysts under comparable conditions, highlighting the strong potential of our strategy to advance photocatalytic hydrogen evolution toward practical green hydrogen production.

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Publication Details

Journal
Advanced Energy Materials
Published
2026-06-08
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.71172
Primary Topic
Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques
Type
article
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article

Multiscale Active Site Modulation in Organic Heterojunction with Molecular‐Level Interfacial Contact for Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

Lei Zhou, Taizhong Xiao, Yonghao Xiao, Mingmei M. Wu et al.
Advanced Energy Materials
Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques
article

Multiscale Active Site Modulation in Organic Heterojunction with Molecular‐Level Interfacial Contact for Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

Lei Zhou, Taizhong Xiao, Yonghao Xiao, Mingmei M. Wu, De‐Qiang Yao, Junfu Tang, Fangxi Xie, Xinlong Tian, Kui Li
article en

Abstract

ABSTRACT The commercialization of green hydrogen production through organic photocatalyst‐promoted solar water splitting for hydrogen evolution is limited by inefficient charge separation and sluggish interfacial kinetics. Herein, this problem is addressed using an ice template–assisted photochemical reduction strategy that integrates molecular‐level interfacial contact between a trefoil‐shaped donor–acceptor molecule (DTAB) and ultrathin carbon nitride nanosheets (UCNS) with Cu single atoms (SAs) anchoring and Pt nanodots (NDs) deposition. The intimate interface in the resulting DTAB–UCNS/CuPt photocatalyst generates a built‐in electric field promoting the separation of photogenerated carriers. The DTAB harvests visible light and injects electrons into UCNS, with these electrons subsequently funneled to Pt NDs via Cu SAs. The electronic coupling between Cu SAs and Pt NDs affects the position of the Pt d ‐band, thus optimizing the H* adsorption/desorption equilibrium and enhancing surface reaction kinetics. The hydrogen evolution rate of DTAB–UCNS/CuPt (261.16 mmol g −1 h −1 ) is 248.7 times higher than that of UCNS/Pt (1.05 mmol g −1 h −1 ) and ranks among the highest reported for carbon nitride–based photocatalysts under comparable conditions, highlighting the strong potential of our strategy to advance photocatalytic hydrogen evolution toward practical green hydrogen production.

Advanced Energy Materials
Sun Yat-sen University (CN), Hainan University (CN), State Key Laboratory of Oncogene and Related Genes (CN)
Openalex Percentile: Top 17%
Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques
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Multiscale Active Site Modulation in Organic Heterojunction with Molecular‐Level Interfacial Contact for Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution — Lei Zhou, Taizhong Xiao, et al. · Advanced Energy Materials (2026) | TGRS Research Map | TGRS