Fabrication of 1D/2D CdS/CoSx direct Z-scheme photocatalyst with enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen evolution performance

In this work, we fabricate a 1D/2D heterojunction photocatalyst composed of n-type CdS nanorods and p-type CoSx nanoflake. This photocatalyst achieves a hydrogen evolution rate of 9.47 mmol g(-1) h(-1), which is 13.7 times higher than that of pure CdS nanorods. Scanning Kelvin Probe, Mott-Schottky plots, UV-Vis absorption spectra and surface pho-tocarrier orienting reaction results indicate that the enhanced photocatalytic performance of CdS/CoSx is owing to the fabrication of direct Z-Scheme heterojunction system which greatly improves the utilization, migration and separation rate of photo-generated carriers. To the best of our knowledge, this work is the first time to describe a CdS/CoSx direct Z-scheme system with 1D/2D nanostructure, which can expedite the transfer process of photogenerated carriers with strong redox energy to participate in photocatalytic reactions. (C) 2020 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

A 1D/2D heterojunction photocatalyst consisting of n-type CdS nanorods and p-type CoSx nanoflake is fabricated, achieving a remarkably high hydrogen evolution rate. The enhanced photocatalytic performance is attributed to the fabrication of a direct Z-Scheme heterojunction system, which significantly improves the utilization, migration, and separation rate of photo-generated carriers. This work describes for the first time a CdS/CoSx direct Z-scheme system with 1D/2D nanostructure.