Cocatalyst designing: a binary noble-metal-free cocatalyst system consisting of ZnIn2S4 and In(OH)3 for efficient visible-light photocatalytic water splitting

A binary noble-metal-free cocatalyst consisting of ZnIn2S4 and In(OH)3 was developed via a facile one-step hydrothermal method. The ZnIn2S4/In(OH)3 modified ZnWO4 nanocomposite exhibited enhanced photocatalytic H2 evolution activity compared to all the related pure samples and binary composite photo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:RSC advances 2018, Vol.8 (9), p.4979-4986
Main Authors: Zhao, Jinyan, Yan, Xiaoming, Zhao, Ning, Li, Xiao, Lu, Bin, Zhang, Xuhong, Yu, Haitao
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Chemistry
Hydrogen evolution
Hydrogen production
Hydrogen storage
Hydrothermal crystal growth
Light
Light irradiation
Nanocomposites
Noble metals
Photocatalysis
Semiconductors
Titanium oxides
Water splitting
Zinc stannate
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Summary:A binary noble-metal-free cocatalyst consisting of ZnIn2S4 and In(OH)3 was developed via a facile one-step hydrothermal method. The ZnIn2S4/In(OH)3 modified ZnWO4 nanocomposite exhibited enhanced photocatalytic H2 evolution activity compared to all the related pure samples and binary composite photocatalysts under visible light irradiation. The enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen production activities can be attributed to the synergistic effects of the favorable light trapping ability and efficient spatial charge separation. The photocatalytic hydrogen evolution activity over other semiconductors, such as Zn2SnO4 and TiO2, can also be significantly increased by loading ZnIn2S4/In(OH)3 as a cocatalyst. The results clearly demonstrated that ZnIn2S4/In(OH)3 is discovered as a new class of earth-abundant cocatalyst for water-splitting under visible light irradiation. It is expected that our work could provide a new strategy to improve the visible light response of semiconductors and facilitate their application in water splitting.
ISSN:2046-2069
DOI:10.1039/c7ra12586k