3D ordered macroporous Pt/ZnS@ZnO core-shell heterostructure for highly effective photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

ZnO, as a typical n-type semiconductor catalyst with low cost and high electron mobility, is concerned by numerous pursuers in the field of photocatalysis. However, because of its poor photo-reduction ability and high recombination rate, the ZnO in photocatalytic H-2 evolution is greatly limited. To acquire an outstanding photocatalytic H-2 evolution performance, 3D ordered macroporous (3DOM) ZnO is sulfurized in-situ to construct 3DOM ZnS@ZnO heterostructure. The ordered macroporous structure not only accelerates the migration of electrons and ions but also curtails the shift space of electrons and holes. The multi-junction assemblage between ZnO and ZnS effectively decreases the recombination of electron-hole pairs and improves the photo-redox capacity. The 3DOM Pt/ZnS@ZnO heterostructure exhibiting an excellent performance is 87.6 mu mol g(-1) h(-1) in pure water. Therefore, our research presents an innovative procedure for designing other porous heterostructure photocatalysts. (C) 2022 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The study presents a novel method by sulfurizing ZnO in-situ to construct a 3D ordered macroporous ZnS@ZnO heterostructure, which effectively improves the limitations of ZnO in photocatalytic H-2 evolution and exhibits excellent catalytic performance.