Robust photogeneration of H2 in water using semiconductor nanocrystals and a nickel catalyst

Homogeneous systems for light-driven reduction of protons to H(2) typically suffer from short lifetimes because of decomposition of the light-absorbing molecule. We report a robust and highly active system for solar hydrogen generation in water that uses CdSe nanocrystals capped with dihydrolipoic acid (DHLA) as the light absorber and a soluble Ni(2+)-DHLA catalyst for proton reduction with ascorbic acid as an electron donor at pH = 4.5, which gives >600,000 turnovers. Under appropriate conditions, the precious-metal-free system has undiminished activity for at least 360 hours under illumination at 520 nanometers and achieves quantum yields in water of over 36%.