Chinese Journal of Catalysis ›› 2026, Vol. 90: 1-26.DOI: 10.1016/S1872-2067(26)65191-1

• Reviews •     Next Articles

Innovative strategies in noble and earth abundant metal single-atom-based photocatalysts for hydrogen production

Ikram Ullaha, Risheng Duana, Muhammad Aminb, Waqar Ahmad Qureshia, An-Wu Xuc,*(), Pei Zhaoa,*(), Ning Qina,*()   

  1. a School of Energy and Power Engineering, Shandong University, Jinan 250061, Shandong, China
    b Department of Chemical, Petroleum & Petrochemical Technology, Mir Chakar Khan Rind University of Technology, Dera Ghazi Khan 32200, Pakistan
    c Division of Nanomaterials and Chemistry, Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, Anhui, China
  • Received:2026-01-01 Accepted:2026-03-09 Online:2026-11-18 Published:2026-11-19
  • About author:An-Wu Xu (Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China) is a Professor at the University of Science and Technology of China. He received his Ph.D. degree in Applied Chemistry from the same University in 1998. He has published more than 270 SCI papers in prestigious journals, including J. Am. Chem. Soc., Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., Adv. Mater., ACS Nano, ACS Energy Lett., ACS Catal., and Adv. Funct. Mater.
    Pei Zhao (School of Energy and Power Engineering, Shandong University) is a Professor at Shandong University. She received her Ph.D. degree from the Functional Ceramic Materials Group at the Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences. From 2014 to 2015, she was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics, Germany. From 2015 to 2022, she held positions as a Postdoctoral Fellow, Research Associate, and Research Assistant Professor at the University of Waterloo, Canada. Her research interests mainly focus on photocatalysis, water splitting, environmental monitoring, microfluidic technology and device development, and the design and preparation of materials for water pollution treatment.
    Ning Qin (School of Energy and Power Engineering, Shandong University) as a Professor at Shandong University. He received his Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Waterloo, Canada, in 2017. From 2018 to 2019, he was a Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard Medical School, United States. From 2019 to 2022, he served as a Research Associate and Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Waterloo, Canada. His research interests mainly focus on nano and microscale fluid dynamics, carbon capture, storage and utilization, and microengineering for advanced diagnostics and therapeutics.
  • Supported by:
    China/Shandong University International Postdoctoral Exchange Program, the Shandong Provincial Natural Science Foundation(ZR2024ME103);China/Shandong University International Postdoctoral Exchange Program, the Shandong Provincial Natural Science Foundation(ZR2023QE305);Shandong Excellent Young Scientists Fund Program (Overseas)(2023HWYQ-021);National Natural Science Foundation of China(52306100);National Natural Science Foundation of China(22271266);USTC-Yanchang Petroleum New Energy Joint Research Project(2022ZKD-02);Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(YD23440002001)

Abstract:

This review presents a comprehensive overview of noble (Pt, Pd, Ag, Au, Ru, and Rh) and earth abundant metals (Co, Cu, Ni, Fe, and Mo) single-atom-based photocatalysts (SACs) for hydrogen (H2) production. We first highlight the fundamental of SACs followed by rational design strategies to achieve atomic-level distribution, and increase the density of active sites. Then, thoroughly summarize the enhanced H2 production activity of noble and earth abundant metal-based SACs. Moreover, insights into the charge transfer mechanisms, such as charge separation, transfer, and spatially defined electron delocalization to unravel the structure-activity relationship and coordination-dependent catalytic performance. Finally, we discuss recent challenges and prospects for designing highly effective SACs. Overall, this review provides a valuable guidance by highlighting fundamental principles of SACs, performance assessment, and mechanistic insights toward practical solar-to-H2 conversion.

Key words: Noble metals, Earth abundant metals, Single-atom-based photocatalysts, Coordination environment, H2 production, Mechanism