Visible-Light-Driven Photocatalytic Dehydrogenation of Alcohols on TiO2 via Ligand-to-Metal Charge Transfer for Coproduction of H2 and Aldehydes

Developing visible-light-driven photocatalysts for the catalytic dehydrogenation of organics is of great significance for sustainable solar energy utilization. Here, we first report that aromatic alcohols could be efficiently split into H2 and aldehydes over TiO2 under visible-light irradiation through a ligand-to-metal charge transfer (LMCT) mechanism. A series of TiO2 catalysts with different surface contents of the hydroxyl group (−OH) have been synthesized by controlling the hydrothermal and calcination synthesis methods. An optimal H2 production rate of 18.6 μmol h–1 is obtained on TiO2 synthesized from the hydrothermal method with a high content of surface −OH. Experimental characterizations and comparison studies reveal that the surface −OH markedly influences the formation of LMCT complexes and thus changes the visible-light-driven photocatalytic performance. This work is anticipated to inspire further research endeavors in the design and fabrication of visible-light-driven photocatalyst systems based on the LMCT mechanism to realize the simultaneous synthesis of clean fuel and fine chemicals.