Reiner Sebastian Sprick

TL;DR: A crystalline covalent organic framework based on a benzo-bis(benzothiophene sulfone) moiety has now been shown to exhibit high activity for photochemical hydrogen evolution from water.

TL;DR: Specific monomer compositions give polymers that are robust and effective photocatalysts for the evolution of hydrogen from water in the presence of a sacrificial electron donor, without the apparent need for an added metal cocatalyst.

TL;DR: The use of hydrogen as a fuel, when generated from water using semiconductor photocatalysts and driven by sunlight, is a sustainable alternative to fossil fuels as discussed by the authors, however, our understanding of the key properties underlying their photoinitiated redox processes has not kept pace, and this impedes further progress to generate cost-competitive technologies.

TL;DR: The most active dibenzo[b,d]thiophene sulfone co‐polymer has a UV photocatalytic activity that rivals TiO2, but is much more active under visible light.