| Abstract Scope |
Recent research in CO2 photoconversion has been heavily focused on catalyst development, including significant efforts to extend photon absorption to the visible range of the solar spectrum. However, there remains a knowledge gap in understanding the dynamics of photocarriers (generation, trapping, diffusion, recombination) and how they relate to adsorption and the dynamics of adsorbed gases and intermediates on the surface of nanostructured catalysts. Here we elucidate these processes using a series of in situ techniques to study CO2 photoconversion on a series of heterostructured nanocatalysts. Unique in situ techniques such as molecular beam scattering, transient absorption spectroscopy, temperature-programmed desorption, electron paramagnetic resonance, and diffuse reflectance IR and UV-Vis spectroscopy are coupled with pulsed and continuous laser techniques to gain mechanistic insight to the catalytic cycle for CO2 photoconversion. Knowledge obtained from these studies will be used to rationally design the next generation of photocatalysts for solar CO2 conversion. |