Acid Sites Cleavage of Surface-Frustrated Lewis Pairs for Small-Molecule Activation of Mixed Volatile Pollutants

Exploring a new catalytic system to achieve the efficient photocatalytic oxidation of mixed volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is imperative. In this study, an in situ-designed surface-frustrated Lewis pair (SFLPs), coupled with the cleavage of the Lewis acid sites (LAs), effectively activated and mineralized a mixture of toluene (C₇H₈) and acetone (C₃H₆O). The precise functionalization facilitated by cleaved LAs achieves targeted activation of C-C bonds in C₇H₈ and central phenyl methyl intermediates, as well as the carbonyl group (C═O) in C₃H₆O, via electron cloud polarization and orbital interactions. Therefore, under illumination, ZHS-H exhibits an impressive average decomposition efficiency of 96.78% for a mixture of C₇H₈ and C₃H₆O (50:20 ppm). This study demonstrates the feasibility of activating bond cleavage of mixed VOCs through the synergistic effects of acid-base chemical interactions ("push-pull" effect), offering novel insights for the cleaved design and precise control of acid-base sites to achieve highly selective activation and conversion of complex, multicomponent pollutants.