Biomimetic-photo-coupled catalysis for boosting H2O2 production.

A catalyst with both photocatalytic and biomimetic catalytic activity for H 2 O 2 production has been successfully prepared by loading gold nanoparticles on graphite carbon nitride nanosheets using polyethyleneimine (PEI) as the "bridge". The biomimetic-photo-coupled catalysis endows PEI-GCN/Au with a high H 2 O 2 production efficiency (270 μmol g−1h−1). This work establishes a paradigm of coupling biomimetic catalysis and photocatalysis for co-production of chemicals. [Display omitted] • A catalyst with bi-functional catalytic activity was developed for H 2 O 2 production. • PEI and AuNPs facilitate the rapid separation of photogenerated carriers on GCN. • Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) of AuNPs promotes the activation of the glucose. • PEI and glucose enhance the O 2 adsorption on the catalyst surface. Inspired by the photo-enzyme-coupled catalytic system in chloroplasts, we developed a composite catalyst with both photocatalytic and biomimetic catalytic activity for H 2 O 2 production by loading gold nanoparticles (AuNPs, enzyme mimics) on graphite carbon nitride (GCN, photocatalyst) nanosheets using polyethyleneimine (PEI) as the "bridge". The introduction of PEI and AuNPs can adjust the electronic structure of GCN, facilitating the rapid separation of photogenerated carriers. Moreover, surface plasmon resonance of AuNPs excited by incident light promotes the activation of glucose molecules, elevating their reactivity with O 2 , thereby improving the glucose oxidase-mimicking catalytic production of H 2 O 2. Furthermore, the grafting of PEI and the addition of glucose enhance the O 2 adsorption on the catalyst surface. Thus, both biomimetic catalytic and photocatalytic reduction of O 2 to H 2 O 2 are boosted, achieving a significant synergistic enhancement effect of 175%. This study provided a novel design strategy for catalysts and a green routine for efficient H 2 O 2 production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]