Engineering a Ru(ii) Nanostructure for Oxygen-Free Photocatalytic Degradation of Environmental Pollutants

The development of high-performing photocatalysts with visible-light-absorbing and oxidative properties for the degradation of organic contaminants in anaerobic microenvironments remains a challenge. Herein, a Ru-complex decorated with coumarin ([Ru(phen)2Cur]Cl2) molecules was created to achieve high absorption capacities and photocatalytic activity. Taking advantage of the nanoparticulate structure, the transformation of [Ru(phen)2Cur]Cl2 molecules into Ru(II) nanostructures (RuCur NPs) not only exhibited an extensive broad visible-light absorption spectrum but also possessed enhanced intersystem crossing efficiency and improved electron transfer. Consequently, these self-assembled nanocatalysts performed efficient photodegradation toward both antibiotics and organic dyes, especially in acidic and anaerobic environments. Mechanistically, photoactivated electrons and holes on the surface of nanostructures drive the degradation of organic molecules via direct redox reactions in an oxygen-independent manner. This result proposed a fundamental insight for developing oxygen-independent nanoparticulate photocatalysts.