Oxysulfide photocatalyst for visible-light-driven overall water splitting

Oxysulfide semiconductors have narrow bandgaps suitable for water splitting under visible-light irradiation, because the electronegative sulfide ions negatively shift the valence band edges of the corresponding oxides(1,2). However, the instability of sulfide ions during the water oxidation is a critical obstacle to simultaneous evolution of hydrogen and oxygen(3). Here, we demonstrate the activation and stabilization of Y2Ti2O5S2, with a bandgap of 1.9 eV, as a photocatalyst for overall water splitting. On loading of IrO2 and Rh/Cr2O3 as oxygen and hydrogen evolution co-catalysts, respectively, and fine-tuning of the reaction conditions, simultaneous production of stoichiometric amounts of hydrogen and oxygen was achieved on Y2Ti2O5S2 during a 20 h reaction. The discovery of the overall water splitting capabilities of Y2Ti2O5S2 extends the range of promising materials for solar hydrogen production.