Selective anchoring of Pt NPs on covalent triazine-based frameworks via in situ derived bridging ligands for boosting photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

The efficient and stable production of hydrogen (H-2) through Pt-containing photocatalysts remains a great challenge. Herein, we develop an effective strategy to selectively and uniformly anchor Pt NPs (similar to 1.2 nm) on a covalent triazine-based framework photocatalyst via in situ derived bridging ligands. Compared to Pt/CTF-1, the obtained Pt/AT-CTF-1 exhibits a considerable photocatalytic H-2 evolution rate of 562.9 mu mol g(-1) h(-1) under visible light irradiation. Additionally, the strong interaction between the Pt NPs and in situ derived bridging ligands provides remarkable stability to Pt/AT-CTF-1. Experimental investigations and photo/chemical characterization reveal the synergy of the in situ derived bridging ligands in Pt/AT-CTF-1, which can selectively anchor the Pt NPs with homogeneous sizes and efficiently improve the transmission of charge carriers. This work provides a new perspective toward stabilizing ultrasmall nanoclusters and facilitating electron transfer in photocatalytic H-2 evolution materials.