Fabrication of Metal-Organic Frameworks for Photoelectrochemical and Photochemical Energy and Environment Applications

In the past few decades, the environmental and energy crises are becoming more and more serious. Therefore, it is meaningful for the development of photocatalytic and photoelectrocatalytic technology for hydrogen production, air purification, carbon neutral and green chemical synthesis (e.g. CO₂ photoreduction, H₂O₂ production, VOCs adsorption and degradation, organic pollution degradation, C-H selective activation...). To realize these targets, various materials with superior performance for photocatalysis and photoelectrocatalysis have been explored in the past few decades. Among those materials, it has been evidenced that the design of hierarchical pores in these materials can increase overall mass transport, leading to better performance.

Our Research Topic is focused on recent developments in hierarchically structured porous materials, which include but are not limited to inorganic nonmetallic materials, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), polymer or organic supermolecules, covalent organic frameworks (COFs), Zeolite, homojunctions, heterojunctions, and nanocomposites. Hierarchically structured porous materials exhibit a porous hierarchy in which the porosity and structure span multiple length scales from micro- to meso- and macropores. The unique electronic and pore structural properties of hierarchically structured porous materials make them a versatile platform for designing efficient and selective photocatalysts and photoelectrocatalysis. We hope this collection will stimulate further research in the field of hierarchically structured porous materials-based materials and promote their practical applications in energy and environment related areas.

This Research Topic aims to provide a comprehensive overview of recent advances in hierarchically structured porous-based materials, including their fabrication, characterization, optical and electronic properties, and the photochemical and photoelectrochemical applications. We welcome Original Research, Review, Mini Review and Perspective articles on themes including, but not limited to:

• Hierarchically structured porous materials for photochemical and photoelectrochemical H₂ production, H₂O₂ synthesis, CO₂ reduction, and C-H selective activation, etc.

• Hierarchically structured porous materials for photochemical and photoelectrochemical pollutant degradation, including but not limited to microplastics, VOCs, NOx, H₂S, etc.

• Hierarchically structured porous materials for photochemical and photoelectrochemical organic chemical synthesis and biomass upgrading.

Keywords: hierarchical pore, photocatalysis, photoelectrocatalysis, nanocomposite, artificial photosynthesis.

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