Sonochemistry synthesis of Bi2S3/CdS heterostructure with enhanced performance for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

Photocatalytic hydrogen evolution from water splitting is an efficient, eco-friendly method for the conversion of solar energy to chemical energy. A great number of photocatalysts have been reported but only a few of them can respond to visible-light. Metal sulfides, a class of visible-light response semiconductor photocatalysts for hydrogen evolution and organic pollutant degradation, receive a lot of attention due to their narrow band gaps. Herein, we report the sonochemical synthesis of Bi2S3/CdS nanocrystal composites with microsphere structure at mild temperature. The phases of Bi2S3 and CdS can be observed obviously in HRTEM image. The heterostructure consisting of the two species of nanocrystals plays a key role in separating photo-generated charge carriers. Photocatalytic activities for water splitting are investigated under visible-light irradiation (lambda > 400 nm) and an enhanced photocatalytic activity is achieved. The initial rate of H-2 evolution is up to 5.5 mmol h(-1) g(-1) without resorting to any cocatalysts. Copyright (C) 2014, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.