Rational Design and Application of MOF-Based Materials for Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction

Abstract

Photocatalytic carbon dioxide (CO2) conversion and utilization is one of the most important ways to solve the global climate and environmental problems and to reach the carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals. Metal–organic framework (MOF)-based materials have been extensively studied for CO2 reduction due to their special interactions with gas molecules, sufficient pore structure, abundant active sites, structural tunability, and renewability. In recent years, the potential of MOF-based materials for CO2 conversion has been significantly enhanced with the revelation of the CO2 adsorption mechanism and diverse functionalized modifications. In this review, a comprehensive description of the synthesis strategies of MOF-based materials is provided at first, systematically categorized into three parts that include directly modified MOFs, MOF derivatives, and MOF composites, with detailed classifications provided for each category. Subsequently, the mechanisms of photocatalytic CO2 reduction and exploring multiple photoexcitation pathways in MOF-based systems are elucidated, unveiling the intrinsic structure-property relationships. Then, the specific recent applications of CO2 reduction by MOF-based materials are comprehensively discussed in detail according to the classification of products.