Noble-metal-free MoS2/Ta3N5 heterostructure photocatalyst for hydrogen generation

A noble-metal-free heterostructure composed of Ta3N5 nanosheets and MoS2 co-catalyst was developed as an efficient photocatalyst for hydrogen production. In special, the MoS2/Ta3N5 heterostructure with 5.2 wt% of MoS2 exhibits a H-2 generation rate of 119.4 mu mol h(-1) g(-1), which is comparable to that of Ta3N5 nanosheets with Pt as co-catalyst. The efficient H-2 generation for MoS2/Ta3N5 heterostructure is resulted from the short diffusion distance of photo-excited charge carriers in Ta3N5 nanosheets, efficient transfer of electrons from Ta3N5 nanosheets to MoS2 surface, and reduced overpotential for water reduction. Furthermore, the stability of the MoS2/Ta3N5 heterostructured photocatalysts are evaluated for the photocatalytic H-2 generation.