Research on the design and application of efficient catalysts based on interfacial chemistry: Molecular catalysts in gas-liquid mixed systems

Major challenges existing in the photocatalytic gas-liquid mixing system model include the mass transfer limit at the gas-liquid interface and the depth of light penetration. For this purpose, amphiphilic molecular catalysts were prepared by monovacancy phosphomolybdate modified by propyltrimethoxysilane. It is also used as a photocatalyst in the model reaction (molecular oxygen oxidation of aromatic alcohol). The amphiphilic molecular catalyst in the reaction is similar to surfactant behavior, not only can adsorb in the gas-liquid interface, ensure the direct contact between oxygen, catalyst and reactants, improve the efficiency of mass transfer, and also reduce the surface tension of aromatic alcohol, gas-liquid-solid three-phase system into foam system. The formed foam system amplifies the interface area of the reaction, enhances the light penetration depth and significantly promotes the reaction rate. The insights gained from our study provide a new perspective on the design of photocatalysis in a gas-liquid hybrid system.