A dye-sensitized photocatalyst with three electron transfer channels was constructed, in which FeOOH and photosensitizer RuL2Cl2 center dot 2H(2)O were employed as the electron donor, carbon nanotubes were served as the electron container. The catalytic activities of the photocatalyst were evaluated by a model photocatalytic carboxylation reaction of phenol by CO2. The photocatalytic efficiency and transient photocurrent density increased obviously when the catalysis reaction was carried out in cyclohexane compared to two electron activations in water, which suggested the formation of three electron transfer channels in the catalytic system. Moreover, time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) calculation results also indicated the existence of three electron transfer channels assisted by intermolecular hydrogen bonding interaction. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.