Journal
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
Volume 11, Issue 6, Pages 5651-5660Publisher
AMER CHEMICAL SOC
DOI: 10.1021/acsami.8b20958
Keywords
g-C3N4; transition-metal phosphides; co-catalysts; precious-metal-free; photocatalytic H-2 production
Funding
- National Key RAMP
- D Program of China [2016YFA0202602]
- Guangxi University
- Guangxi Key Laboratory of Processing for Nonferrous Metallic and Featured Materials
- Xiamen University
- Petronas
- ExxonMobil
- Shell Malaysia
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Sub-5 nm ultra-fine iron phosphide (FeP) nano-dots-modified porous graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) heterojunction nanostructures are successfully prepared through the gas-phase phosphorization of Fe3O4/g-C3N4 nanocomposites. The incorporation of zero-dimensional (0D) ultra-small FeP nanodots co-catalysts not only effectively facilitate charge separation but also serve as reaction active sites for hydrogen (H-2) evolution. Herein, the strongly coupled FeP/g-C3N4 hybrid systems are employed as precious-metal-free photocatalysts for H-2 production under visible-light irradiation. The optimized FeP/g-C3N4 sample displays a maximum H-2 evolution rate of 177.9 mu mol h(-1) g(-1) with the apparent quantum yield of 1.57% at 420 nm. Furthermore, the mechanism of photocatalytic H-2 evolution using 0D/2D FeP/g-C3N4 heterojunction interfaces is systematically corroborated by steady-state photoluminescence (PL), time-resolved PL spectroscopy, and photoelectrochemical results. Additionally, an increased donor density in FeP/g-C3N4 is evidenced from the Mott-Schottky analysis in comparison with that of parent g-C3N4, signifying the enhancement of electrical conductivity and charge transport owing to the emerging role of FeP. The density functional theory calculations reveal that the FeP/g-C3N4 hybrids could act as a promising catalyst for the H-2 evolution reaction. Overall, this work not only paves a new path in the engineering of monodispersed FeP-decorated g-C3N4 0D/2D robust nanoarchitectures but also elucidates potential insights for the utilization of noble-metal-free FeP nanodots as remarkable co-catalysts for superior photocatalytic H-2 evolution.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available