Visible-light photoconversion of carbon dioxide into organic acids in an aqueous solution of carbon dots

Carbon "quantum" dots (or carbon dots) have emerged as a new class of optical nanomaterials. Beyond the widely reported bright fluorescence emissions in carbon dots, their excellent photoinduced redox properties that resemble those found in conventional semiconductor nanostructures are equally valuable, with photon-electron conversion applications from photovoltaics to CO2 photocatalytic reduction. In this work we used gold-doped carbon dots from controlled synthesis as water-soluble catalysts for a closer examination of the visible-light photoconversion of CO2 into small organic acids, including acetic acid (for which the reduction requires many more electrons than that for formic acid) and, more interestingly, for the significantly enhanced photoconversion with higher CO2 pressures over an aqueous solution of the photocatalysts. The results demonstrate the nanoscale semiconductor-equivalent nature of carbon dots, with excellent potential in energy conversion applications.