Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 8, 2026

Developing Photosensitizer-Cobaloxime Hybrids for Solar-Driven H2 Production in Aqueous Aerobic Conditions
Published on: October 5, 2019
Dipole synergy enables fast directional charge transport for solar hydrogen and benzaldehyde coproduction
Zhennan Wang1, Dingyanyan Zhou2, Kaige Tian1
1Key Laboratory of Applied Surface and Colloid Chemistry, Ministry of Education; Shaanxi Engineering Lab for Advanced Energy Technology, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, P. R. China.
Abstract:
Artificial photosynthesis for hydrogen evolution coupled with benzyl alcohol photoreforming faces efficiency challenges due to insufficient charge directional transfer. Here, we report a synergistic strategy integrating the polarization electric field from asymmetric Zn3In4S9 and the interface dipole field induced by MoS2 to drive fast charge dynamics. The optimized 6%-MoS2/Zn3In4S9 exhibits notable photocatalytic performance, generating 41.19 mmol g-1 h-1 of hydrogen and 43.33 mmol g-1 h-1 of benzaldehyde, which is 11.8 to 12.2 times higher than that of Zn3In4S9. Notably, apparent quantum yields reach 36.6% ± 0.7% for hydrogen and 40.0% ± 0.3% for benzaldehyde (3 times), while retaining 93.8% and 87% of initial activity after 30 hours, demonstrating high stability. In this work, we reveal that the intrinsic dipole of Zn3In4S9 generates a polarization electric field, suppressing bulk charge recombination. Concurrently, the MoS2-induced interface dipole field creates a fast electron transport pathway from Zn3In4S9 to MoS2.
Related Concept Videos
Reduction of Alkenes: Asymmetric Catalytic Hydrogenation
The metal catalyst used can be either heterogeneous or homogeneous. When hydrogenation of an alkene generates a chiral center, a pair of enantiomeric products is expected to form. However, an enantiomeric excess of one of the products can be facilitated using an enantioselective reaction or an...
Induced Electric Dipoles
Since the absolute value of potential energy holds no physical meaning, its zero value can be chosen as per...
Chemiosmosis
Electron Transport Chain
The electron transport chain involves a series of protein complexes on the inner mitochondrial membrane that undergo a series of redox reactions. At the end of this chain, the electrons...
Reduction of Alkenes: Catalytic Hydrogenation
Metals like palladium, platinum, and nickel are commonly used in their solid forms — fine powder on an inert surface. As these catalysts remain insoluble in the reaction mixture, they are referred to as heterogeneous catalysts.
The hydrogenation process takes place on the...
Intermolecular Forces
Hydrogen Bonds

