Porphyrin-based dye for advanced application

The SunLab research group at the University of Milan La Statale specializes in the design and synthesis of advanced porphyrin-based materials for energy conversion, catalysis, and sensor technologies. Key research areas include developing porphyrin-based materials for solar energy conversion, particularly Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs). These cells, which can be made transparent and in various colors, are promising for Building Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPVs) and indoor energy capture. The focus is on synthesizing efficient β-substituted ZnII porphyrins, which offer a more accessible synthetic approach compared to meso-substituted ones. These porphyrins, with strong visible absorption and long-lived excited states, are ideal for DSSC applications due to their effectiveness in charge injection processes. Another major focus is advancing artificial photosynthesis with novel dyes for water splitting. High-fluorinated ZnII porphyrins are synthesized to align molecular orbitals for effective electron transfer to semiconductor conduction bands and hole transfer to water oxidation catalysts. Work on β-substituted and meso-substituted porphyrins, especially those with cyanoacrylic terminal groups, shows promising results in driving water oxidation and enhancing solar-driven energy conversion. The group also specializes in iron-coordinated porphyrins for CO2 reduction. These catalysts, which reduce CO2 to valuable compounds such as CO, address contemporary energy challenges and contribute to climate change mitigation. The porphyrins demonstrate significant potential as efficient catalysts for CO2 photoreduction, offering solutions to the energy-intensive CO2 radical formation process. Porphyrins are also being explored as sensing materials, particularly in chemoresistor devices for detecting volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in biomedical applications. By developing tailored porphyrins to assemble nano-heterojunctions with metal-semiconductor oxides, the group aims to enhance the sensitivity of sensors, enabling them to function effectively at room temperature. In nonlinear optical (NLO) applications, porphyrins and metalloporphyrins have been synthesized with novel push-pull systems, demonstrating significant second-order NLO properties. These materials show potential in various applications, including telecommunications and optical switching devices. Overall, the group is pioneering the development of innovative porphyrin-based materials for applications in solar energy conversion, artificial photosynthesis, catalysis, sensing, and nonlinear optics.