CsPbBr3 Perovskite Nanocrystal: A Robust Photocatalyst for Realizing NO Abatement

Abstract

Photocatalysis is a promising method for removing atmospheric NO but suffers from unsatisfactory removal efficiency and selectivity. Inorganic lead halide perovskites (LHPs) have been intensely investigated in the field of solar cells as new wonder materials. The intrinsic merits of LHPs provide additional opportunities for their use in fields beyond photovoltaics. Herein, for the first time, we extend the application of the low-cost lead inorganic CsPbBr3 perovskite to high-performance photocatalytic elimination of NO under visible-light irradiation. The CsPbBr3 nanocrystals (NCs) with an edge size of ca. 12 nm can reach a high NO removal activity (50.6%) under a gas hourly space velocity (GHSV) of 1,800,000 mL h–1 g–1 and obtain high selectivity (89.0%) for the formation of ionic species instead of more toxic NO2. A significant improvement for NO removal over the state-of-the-art photocatalysts with an outstanding long-term stability of up to 15 h is demonstrated. The excellent performance can be ascribed to the efficient charge separation and transfer and the visible-light-harvesting ability of CsPbBr3 NCs. These findings open a new avenue for the use of the low-cost, easy-to-process, highly efficient, and air-tolerant CsPbBr3 perovskites toward air pollution remediation.