Solvent Effects on Photocatalytic Anaerobic Oxidation of Benzyl Alcohol over Pt-Loaded Defective SrTiO3 Nanoparticles

Photocatalytic selective oxidation of alcohols under mild conditions is an emerging technique to encounter the global challenges of energy source shortages and the green synthesis perspective. Herein, we investigate the solvent effects on heterogeneous photocatalytic anaerobic oxidation of benzyl alcohol with Pt-loaded defective SrTiO3 nanoparticles. It is found that the optimal solvent is water mixed with a small amount of dimethylformamide (DMF) or acetonitrile, while the solvent effects on the oxidation of benzyl alcohol are related to the adsorption of benzyl alcohol and benzaldehyde on the photocatalysts in different solvents, in which the adsorption of benzyl alcohol plays a major role, while such positive effect can be significantly offset in case the adsorption of benzaldehyde is leading the effort. This work offers the avenue to improve the photocatalytic oxidation of alcohols by optimizing the reaction solvents in addition to the well-known structure engineering of the photocatalysts