Photothermal Catalysis

A new area of study within heterogeneous catalysis is called photothermal catalysis. It differs from both heat-driven thermochemical catalysis and sunlight-driven photochemical catalysis. Instead, photothermal catalysis uses the sun's wide absorption to activate a mix of thermochemical and photochemical processes that work together to fuel catalytic reactions. It is particularly proven to be a successful and promising method for turning CO₂ into synthetic fuels. Numerous photothermal materials, such as inorganic and organic materials (such as polymers), which irradiate incident light to produce thermal energy (heat), have been found to exhibit the photothermal effect. Comparing photothermal processes to other solar energy utilisation technologies, photothermal processes can exhibit the highest possible efficiency of energy conversion.