Mar 2023
CO2 capture and valorisation are important for the development of carbon-neutral (energy) technologies. Furthermore, energy storage is an essential part of efficient solar energy use. CO2 can be a precursor of value-added chemicals such as formic acid, methanol, methane, and other C2+ products. When produced via photocatalytic CO2 reduction using abundant solar irradiation, these solar fuels can offer convenient means of solar energy storage. The goals of this work are: (1) to demonstrate that organic semiconductor nanoparticles can serve as visible-light active photocatalysts for selective CO2 conversion to solar fuels; (2) to synthesise these photocatalysts with high precision and control over morphology and composition to improve reproducibility and allow upscaling; (3) and to understand the photophysics behind the CO2 conversion process using advanced steady-state and time-resolved spectroscopy techniques.
Maria is currently in her second year of PhD under the supervision of Professor Frédéric Laquai at KAUST Solar Center. She obtained her integrated BSc and MSc in Chemistry, specialty Analytical Chemistry from Lomonosov Moscow State University (Russia) in 2020. Her PhD research focuses on the development, testing and characterisation of both organic and inorganic semiconductors for photocatalytic solar fuel production from carbon dioxide and other chemicals.