Continuous flow photosynthesis of methanol from methane by plasmonic charge accumulation.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 41354728.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-025-67051-6 and PMC identifier 12789629.
- Licence recorded as CC BY-NC-ND.
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Abstract
Direct oxidation of methane (CH<sub>4</sub>) to methanol (CH<sub>3</sub>OH) typically requires elevated temperatures and pressures, making it challenging to achieve high yield and selectivity under mild conditions. Here, we show a surface plasmon-mediated catalyst designing strategy based on the synergy between Pd nanoparticles and ZnO nanosheets. When applied in a continuous gas-solid-liquid photocatalytic flow system at low temperature and ambient pressure, the optimized catalyst achieves a CH<sub>3</sub>OH productivity of 6584 μmol g<sup>-1</sup> h<sup>-1</sup>, which is competitive with reported photocatalytic systems, along with selectivity of ~100% and sustained stability over 100 h. In-situ characterization and theoretical calculations indicate that plasmon-induced electron accumulation suppresses over-oxidation and promotes high CH<sub>3</sub>OH selectivity. This work offers a pathway to efficient, selective CH<sub>4</sub> photo-oxidation using plasmonic catalyst design, supporting the sustainable utilization of solar energy.