Synthesis of Particulate Hierarchical Tandem Heterojunctions toward Optimized Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production

Photocatalytic hydrogen production using semiconductors is identified as one of the most promising routes for sustainable energy; however, it is challenging to harvest the full solar spectrum in a particulate photocatalyst for high activity. Herein, a hierarchical hollow black TiO2/MoS2/CdS tandem heterojunction photocatalyst, which allows broad-spectrum absorption, thus delivering enhanced hydrogen evolution performance is designed and synthesized. The MoS2 nanosheets not only function as a cost-effective cocatalyst but also act as a bridge to connect two light-harvesting semiconductors into a tandem heterojunction where the CdS nanoparticles and black TiO2 spheres absorb UV and visible light on both sides efficiently, coupling with the MoS2 cocatalyst into a particulate photocatalyst system. Consequently, the photocatalytic hydrogen rate of the black TiO2/MoS2/CdS tandem heterojunction is as high as 179 mu mol h(-1) per 20 mg photocatalyst under visible-light irradiation, which is almost 3 times higher than that of black TiO2/MoS2 heterojunctions (57.2 mu mol h(-1)). Most importantly, the stability of CdS nanoparticles in the black TiO2/MoS2/CdS tandem heterojunction is greatly improved compared to MoS2/CdS because of the formation of tandem heterojunctions and the strong UV-absorbing effect of black TiO2. Such a tandem architectural design provides new ways for synthesizing particulate photocatalysts with high efficiencies.