Rational Design of Improved Ru Containing Fe-Based Metal-Organic Framework (MOF) Photoanode for Artificial...

Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) recently emerged as a new platform for the realization of integrated devices for artificial photosynthesis. However, there remain few demonstrations of rational tuning of such devices for improved performance. Here, a fast molecular water oxidation catalyst working via water nucleophilic attack is integrated into the MOF MIL-142, wherein Fe₃O nodes absorb visible light, leading to charge separation. Materials are characterized by a range of structural and spectroscopic techniques. New, [Ru(tpy)(Qc)(H₂O)]⁺ (tpy = 2,2':6',2″-terpyridine and Qc = 8-quinolinecarboxylate)-doped Fe MIL-142 achieved a high photocurrent (1.6 × 10^-3 A·cm^-2) in photo-electrocatalytic water splitting at pH = 1. Unassisted photocatalytic H₂ evolution is also reported with Pt as the co-catalyst (4.8 µmol g^-1 min^-1). The high activity of this new system enables hydrogen gas capture from an easy-to-manufacture, scaled-up prototype utilizing MOF deposited on FTO glass as a photoanode. These findings provide insights for the development of MOF-based light-driven water-splitting assemblies utilizing a minimal amount of precious metals and Fe-based photosensitizers.