2D-C(3)N(4) encapsulated perovskite nanocrystals for efficient photo-assisted thermocatalytic CO(2) reduction

Very recently, halide perovskites, especially all-inorganic CsPbBr(3), have received ever-increasing attention in photocatalysis owing to their superior optoelectronic properties and thermal stability. However, there is a lack of study on their application in thermocatalysis and photo-thermocatalysis. Herein, we rationally designed a core–shell heterojunction formed by encapsulating CsPbBr(3) nanoparticles with the 2D C(3)N(4) (m-CN) layer via a solid-state reaction (denoted as m-CN@CsPbBr(3)). A series of experiments suggest that abundant adsorption and active sites of CO(2) molecules as well as polar surfaces were obtained by utilizing m-CN-coated CsPbBr(3), resulting in significant improvement in CO(2) capture and charge separation. It is found that the m-CN@CsPbBr(3) effectively drives the thermocatalytic reduction of CO(2) in H(2)O vapor. By coupling light into the system, the activity for CO(2)-to-CO reduction is further improved with a yield up to 42.8 μmol g(−1) h(−1) at 150 °C, which is 8.4 and 2.3 times those of pure photocatalysis (5.1 μmol g(−1) h(−1)) and thermocatalysis (18.7 μmol g(−1) h(−1)), respectively. This work expands the application of general halide perovskites and provides guidance for using perovskite-based catalysts for photo-assisted thermocatalytic CO(2) reduction.