Efficient piezocatalytic H2O2 production of atomic-level thickness Bi4Ti3O12 nanosheets with surface oxygen vacancy

• Atomic-level thickness Bi 4 Ti 3 O 12 with surface oxygen vacancies was prepared. • It shows an outstanding piezocatalytic H 2 O 2 generation rate of 1.61 mmol·h −1 ·g −1 . • Atomic-level thickness and oxygen vacancy increase the piezoelectric coefficient. • Oxygen vacancies also decrease the adsorption energy of O 2 for easy activation. Traditional anthraquinone method for producing H 2 O 2 needs high energy consumption and substantial toxic by-production release. Recently, piezocatalysis that can conquer the above shortcomings emerges as a promising catalytic technique and arouses considerable interests. With rare application of piezocatalysis on H 2 O 2 generation, exploiting efficient tactics for improving piezocatalytic H 2 O 2 productivity is highly anticipated. Herein, atomic-level thickness Bi 4 Ti 3 O 12 nanosheets with rich surface oxygen vacancies (OVs) are prepared for two-step single-electron O 2 reduction into H 2 O 2 . Piezoelectric force microscopy, piezo-electrochemical tests, and Finite Element Simulation disclose that both the atomic-level thickness and OVs enlarge the piezoelectric coefficient, rendering stronger piezoelectric polarization for accelerating the charge separation and reaction kinetics. Density functional theory calculations uncover that the surface OVs also decrease the adsorption energy of O 2 molecules for facilitating their activation. The ultra-thin Bi 4 Ti 3 O 12 with optimal OVs content shows a piezocatalytic H 2 O 2 evolution rate of 1611.2 μmol·h −1 ·g −1 with benign durability. This work delivers a joint-strategy for advancing the piezocatalytic activity, and furnishes a reference for producing useful chemicals by harvesting and utilizing accessible vibrational energy.