Metal-Organic Framework-Based Materials for Solar Water Splitting

Solar-driven water splitting is a promising way to produce renewable hydrogen. The design of efficient semiconductor photocatalysts plays a vital role in this process. The recent dynamic development of metal-organic framework (MOF) materials provides a good opportunity to design efficient composite photocatalysts toward solar water splitting. Herein, a critical review of the design and development of MOF/semiconductor composite photocatalysts for solar-driven water splitting is presented. The designing strategies of MOF-based composite photocatalysts, including the use of organic ligands, quantum dots and carbon-based materials to form heterostructures, and the combination of MOF layers with semiconductors to fabricate thin-film photoelectrodes for photoelectrochemical water splitting, are introduced. The remaining challenges and future perspectives of the MOF-based composites with the hope of achieving improved solar water splitting are also discussed.