Gas-Phase Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction to Ethane via EDOT-Based Trimers

Abstract

The photocatalytic conversion of CO2 into fuels and high-value chemicals is a promising strategy to counteract the negative impact of greenhouse gas emissions. While most studies focus on UV-responsive semiconductors, few evaluate photocatalytic performance in the gas phase under visible light. In this work, we introduce 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT)-based conjugated trimers as visible-light-responsive photocatalysts for CO2 conversion in the gas phase. We examine how changes in the acceptor units of these donor-acceptor-donor trimers affect their molecular arrangement and photocatalytic performance. By tuning the acceptor units, we achieve different aggregate states, which enable us to modulate product selectivity, shifting from C1 to C2+ products with high stability for over 10 hours of light exposure under continuous gas flow.