Photocatalytic device to dissociate an aqueous phase to product hydrogen gas, said device being set up in such a way that at least one photocatalytic system in contact with said aqueous phase can be irradiated by a light source to produce—through an oxidation reaction in said aqueous phase—oxygen gas, electrons and protons at a means of electron capture, said device comprising: a first zone comprising said aqueous phase, and a means for reducing said protons set up to carry out a reduction reaction on said protons by said electrons in order to generate hydrogen gas.
said device being characterised in that said means for proton reduction is a proton exchange interface with a front side facing said means of electron capture, and a back side, with only said back side of said proton exchange interface bearing at least one catalyst and/or at least one catalytic system.

Iron-containing mixed-phase metal oxides are described. The mixed-phase metal oxides can exhibit electrocatalytic and/or photo-electrocatalytic activity towards reducing reactions, such as the reduction of carbon dioxide.

Techniques for photocatalytic hydrogen generation are provided. In one aspect, a hydrogen producing cell is provided. The hydrogen producing cell includes an anode electrode; a photocatalytic material adjacent to the anode electrode; a solid electrolyte adjacent to a side of the photocatalytic material opposite the anode electrode; and a cathode electrode adjacent to a side of the solid electrolyte opposite the photocatalytic material. A solar hydrogen producing system including at least one solar concentrating assembly having the hydrogen producing cell, and a method for producing hydrogen using the hydrogen producing cell are also provided.

A photocatalytic composition is disclosed that includes a silver halide in combination with one or more rare earth elements. The composition may be used for the photocatalytic degradation of pollutants.

Nanostructured arrays having a metal catalyst (e.g., cobalt) are irradiated with light to initiate the an artificial photosynthetic reaction resulting in the formation of carbon-containing molecules, for example, long chained hydrocarbons or amino acids. A nanostructure having one or more structural elements having a high aspect ratio can formed over a substrate and are placed in contact with water and a carbon-containing source (e.g., carbon dioxide, bicarbonate, methane). When the nanostructure is exposed to light, the water and the carbon-containing source can react to form a molecule having at least two carbon atoms chained together. Structural elements may include a number of metal layers arranged in a patterned configuration so that, upon light irradiation, a greater amount of light energy is concentrated in close proximity to the region where the reaction is catalyzed than for the case without the patterned configuration.

Disclosed herein is a composite particle comprising a first non-metallic particle in which is dispersed a second non-metallic particle, where the first non-metallic particle and the second non-metallic particle are inorganic; and where a chemical composition of the first non-metallic particle is different from a chemical composition of the second non-metallic particle; and where the first non-metallic particle and the second non-metallic particle are metal oxides, metal carbides, metal nitrides, metal borides, metal silicides, metal oxycarbides, metal oxynitrides, metal boronitrides, metal carbonitrides, metal borocarbides, or a combination thereof.

A method of photooxygenating furfural in a photooxygenating system, whereby a liquid mixture comprising furfural, a photosensitizer, and a reaction solvent is passed through a reaction section of the photooxygenating system, wherein the liquid mixture is exposed to solar radiation, while a portion of the furfural is oxidized in presence of the photosensitizer and a furanone compound is produced. Various embodiments of the photocatalytic water splitting reactor, and the water splitting system are also provided.

An alternative process and device for carrying out Fischer Tropsch (FT) syntheses is proposed, allowing the reactant entities that take part in the FT reaction to be activated and their contributions, whether by quantity or by proportion, to be adjusted. The process consists in making a particulate phase, optionally consisting of catalytic particles, flow through a reactor. While flowing through the reactor, the particulate phase is subjected at regular intervals to the action of a plasma obtained from a gas, such as hydrogen, thus enabling hydrogen activation for hydrogenation of carbon monoxide, or carbon monoxide activation in order to lengthen the carbon chains.

Reactors are provided that can include a first set of fluid channels and a second set of fluid channels oriented in thermal contact with the first set of fluid channels. The reactor assemblies can also provide where the channels of either one or both of the first of the set of fluid channels are non-linear. Other implementations provide for at least one of the first set of fluid channels being in thermal contact with a plurality of other channels of the second set of fluid channels. Reactor assemblies are also provided that can include a first set of fluid channels defining at least one non-linear channel having a positive function, and a second set of fluid channels defining at least another non-linear channel having a negative function in relation to the positive function of the one non-linear channel of the first set of fluid channels. Processes for distributing energy across a reactor are provided. The processes can include transporting reactants via a first set of fluid channels to a second set of fluid channels, and thermally engaging at least one of the first set of fluid channels with at least two of the second set of fluid channels.

In one aspect, the invention provides a method of promoting a carbon-sulfur bond forming reaction. In certain embodiments, the reaction comprises cross-coupling of a(n) (hetero)aryl halide with a thiol to form the carbon-sulfur bond, wherein the method is promoted by light irradiation in the absence of a photocatalyst. In other embodiments, the cross-coupling reaction can be promoted through visible light irradiation, including sunlight.