Tailoring Photophysical Properties of Diketopyrrolopyrrole Small Molecules with Electron-Withdrawing Moieties for Efficient Solar Steam Generation

• DOI: 10.1021/acsami.1c10665
• Publication Date: 2021-08-05T14:56:37Z
• Authors: Suhendro Purbo Pr...; Shih-Sheng Sun; Rosari Saleh; Yu-Tai Tao; Chien-Lung Wang
• Keywords: 13. Climate action; 7. Clean energy; 01 natural sciences; 6. Clean water; 0104 chemical sciences

The development of photothermal materials (PTMs) for solar steam generation (SSG) has gained tremendous attention in response to the global clean water scarcity issue. However, investigation employing organic small-molecule PTMs SSG applications is rarely found due their narrow optical absorption range harvest energy and insufficient photostability long-term use. Herein, we employ a diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP) core unit together with electron-withdrawing (EW) endcaps siloxane side chains introduce stronger intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) characteristics as well hydrophobic character. enhanced ICT DPP derivatives render broad range, less emission, high nonradiative decay rate efficient harvesting effects. Meanwhile, nature these allows facile fabrication novel Janus membranes effective vaporization solar-to-vapor conversion efficiency. By embedding device, showed that efficiency can reach up 71.8% under relatively low visible light power (∼700 W m–2), which is, on average, 2.66 times higher than bulk similar dimension. Moreover, this report demonstrates great potential conjugated small molecules applications, owing versatility flexibility structural engineering its diminishing radiative properties. This may inspire more innovation advancement applications.