A Critical Review of the Use of Bismuth Halide Perovskites for CO2 Photoreduction: Stability Challenges and Strategies Implemented

Abstract

Inspired by natural photosynthesis, the photocatalytic CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) stands as a viable strategy for the production of solar fuels to mitigate the high dependence on highly polluting fossil fuels, as well as to decrease the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere. The design of photocatalytic materials is crucial to ensure high efficiency of the CO2RR process. So far, perovskite materials have shown high efficiency and selectivity in CO2RR to generate different solar fuels. Particularly, bismuth halide perovskites have gained much attention due to their higher absorption coefficients, their more efficient charge transfer (compared to oxide perovskites), and their required thermodynamic potential for CO2RR. Moreover, these materials represent a promising alternative to the highly polluting lead halide perovskites. However, despite all the remarkable advantages of bismuth halide perovskites, their use has been limited, owing to instability concerns. As a consequence, recent reports have offered solutions to obtain structures highly stable against oxygen, water, and light, promoting the formation of solar fuels with promising efficiency for CO2RR. Thus, this review analyzes the current state of the art in this field, particularly studies about stability strategies from intrinsic and extrinsic standpoints. Lastly, we discuss the challenges and opportunities in designing stable bismuth halide perovskites, which open new opportunities for scaling up the CO2RR.