Carbon doped and PTCDA co-construct S-scheme heterojunction to tune boron nitride for boosted photosynthesis hydrogen peroxide

Abstract

The development of novel metal-free catalysts to photosynthesize hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is recognized as a prospective technology for sustainable energy conversion. Herein, the carbon-doped boron nitride (BCN) and perylene tetracarboxylic dianhydride (PTCDA) formed PDA@BCN S-scheme heterojunctions with π-π stacking, which catalyzed the production of H2O2 at an unexpectedly high yield of 285.47 μmol h−1 g−1 in air. The high photocatalytic performance is attributed to the enhanced light absorption resulting in abundant carrier excitation, rapid charge separation driven by S-scheme heterojunctions, and highly selective H2O2 formation pathway. Theoretical calculations demonstrate that carbon sites in PDA@BCN can serve as an advanced active center for oxygen enrichment and activation, promoting oxygen reduction and efficient photocatalytic production of H2O2. This work lays the foundation for the design of efficient, stable, and reusable photocatalysts for environmental restoration and energy conversion.