Novel ReS2/g-C3N4 heterojunction photocatalyst formed by electrostatic self-assembly with increased H2 production

Binary heterostructures (named as CN@Re) composed of ReS2 nanospheres and g-C3N4 nanosheets are constructed by electrostatic self-assembly method. The ReS2 nanospheres were prepared by hydrothermal method and the g-C3N4 nanosheets were treated with surface charge modification. Hydrogen production efficiency of modified CN and CN@Re nanostructures was evaluated in a simulated solar environment. To our surprise, CN5@Re5% exhibits the highest H2 production up to 1823 mmol g-1h-1 of CN5@Rey, which is 3.2 times as high as CN. The improvement of the photocatalytic hydrogen production ef-ficiency of modified CN is attributed to its interaction with the hole sacrificing agent lactic acid, while the improvement of the photocatalytic activity of CN@Re nanostructure is attributed to the efficient electron transfer efficiency between CN and ReS2 and the enhanced light absorption capacity brought by ReS2. In addition, the photocatalytic sta-bility of CN5@Re5% has been studied, which can maintain a stable rate of hydrogen pro-duction over four cycles. The apparent quantum efficiency is as high as 4.10% at 365 nm and 2.82% at 420 nm.(c) 2022 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

Binary heterostructures of CN@Re composed of ReS2 nanospheres and g-C3N4 nanosheets were constructed by electrostatic self-assembly method. The CN@Re exhibited high photocatalytic hydrogen production efficiency and stability in a simulated solar environment.