COFfee: a coffee waste@anthraquinone COF nanocomposite as a photocatalyst for green hydrogen production

Abstract

Sustainability is pivotal for the growth, development, and survival of future generations, necessitating a shift to renewable energy sources and sustainable materials. The development of waste-derived, visible-light-active, nontoxic photocatalysts for water splitting is a promising approach in this direction. We report the one-pot synthesis of a novel waste coffee (WC)-based covalent organic framework (COF) nanocomposite, WC@DqTp, via a vortex-assisted solvothermal method. Integrating an anthraquinone-based COF (DqTp) with WC enhances its photocatalytic performance through improved charge separation. The photocatalytic activity of WC@DqTp for hydrogen evolution from water using platinum as a co-catalyst without an added sacrificial agent (36.1 μmol g –1 h –1 ) was almost two times higher than that of bare COF DqTp (21.2 μmol g –1 h –1 ). XPS, photoelectrochemistry, and PL lifetime measurements demonstrated that the superior efficiency of the nanocomposite is likely due to the formation of a Z-scheme heterojunction between WC and DqTp. This work highlights the potential of sustainable materials as efficient photocatalysts for green hydrogen generation.