Acta Phys. -Chim. Sin. ›› 2026, Vol. 42 ›› Issue (3): 100184.doi: 10.1016/j.actphy.2025.100184

• ARTICLE • Previous Articles     Next Articles

WO3@TP inorganic@organic S-scheme photocatalyst for boosting H2O2 production

Wenjun Zhu1, Chenbin Ai2, Kaiqiang Xu3,*(), Yatai Zhou2, Xidong Zhang2, Yong Zhang1,*()   

  1. 1 School of Advanced Materials and Green Chemical Engineering, Hubei Key Laboratory of Mine Environmental Pollution Control & Remediation, Hubei Polytechnic University, Huangshi 435003, Hubei Province, China
    2 Laboratory of Solar Fuel, Faculty of Materials Science and Chemistry, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), Wuhan 430078, Hubei Province, China
    3 School of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Shanghai Institute of Technology, Shanghai, 201418, China
  • Received:2025-08-03 Revised:2025-09-06 Accepted:2025-09-08 Published:2026-01-05
  • Contact: Email: xukaiqiang24@sit.edu.cn (Kaiqiang Xu)zy0340907@163.com (Yong Zhang)

Abstract:

Photocatalysis of H2O2 production using O2 and water is a cost-effective and environmental process, but developing high-performance photocatalysts is still a challenge. Herein, a WO3@polymer S-scheme photocatalyst was synthesized by in situ growing the Schiff-base polymer, tris-(4-aminophenyl)amine (TAPA)-terephthaldicarboxaldehyde (PDA) (labeled as TP) on the surface of WO3 nanofibers (WO3@TP) at room temperature. The obtained WO3@TP S-scheme heterojunction exhibited rapid carrier separation ability and short photogenerated carriers transfer distance. The optimal WO3@TP composite (WT-10) realized the H2O2 evolution rate of 3242 μmol g−1 h−1, which was 137.3 and 4.6-fold higher than bare WO3 and TP, respectively. The combination of advanced characterizations regarding in situ irradiated X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (ISI-XPS), theoretical calculation, and femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy (fs-TAS) validates the charge transfer mechanism within the WO3@TP S-scheme heterojunction. The occurrence of a dual-channel pathway (O2 reduction reaction (ORR) and water oxidation reaction (WOR) within the reaction system has been confirmed via electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS), thereby contributing to the highly efficient H2O2 evolution. This study not only gives an in-depth understanding of the ultrafast charge migration behavior in S-scheme heterojunction but also offers the rational design of inorganic@organic photocatalysts applied to solar-driven H2O2 production.

Key words: Photocatalytic H2O2 evolution, S-scheme heterojunction, Polymers, Ultrafast charge transfer, WO3 nanofibers