Organic materials as photocatalysts for water splitting

Abstract

Solar water splitting offers a potential avenue for the production of clean and storable energy in the form of hydrogen. Semiconductors can be used as photocatalysts that enable the simultaneous production of hydrogen and oxygen from water via water splitting and in recent years inorganic semiconductor photocatalysts have been significantly improved in terms of their performance with organic semiconductors emerging as a potential alternative, though mostly studied for sacrificial half-reactions. Herein, we present recent developments in using organic semiconductors as photocatalysts highlighting their potential due to their synthetic tunability. We will particularly focus on their application in overall water splitting without using sacrificial reagents and suggest future directions in using these materials in large scale applications before concluding with suggestions for a wider community to focus research efforts on particular challenges in the field and opportunities that organic materials offer.