Porous CoxP nanosheets decorated Mn0.35Cd0.65S nanoparticles for highly enhanced noble-metal-free photocatalytic H2 generation

Incorporating 2D transition-metal phosphides into visible-light-driven semiconductors is fascinating for advancing novel photocatalysts. In this paper, porous CoxP nanosheets prepared by phosphating Co(OH)(2) nanosheets are coupled with Mn0.35Cd0.65S nanoparticles for significantly boosted photocatalytic H-2 evolution performance. The optimal CoxP/Mn0.35Cd0.65S hybrids show an excellent visible-light H-2 production rate of 7188.9 lmol g(-1)h(-1) upon visible light with an apparent quantum yield (AQY) of 18.9% at 420 nm. The H-2 production rate of the 5% CoxP/Mn0.35Cd0.65S sample is about 257 times bare CdS and even 18 times higher than pristine Mn0.35Cd0.65S. This dramatic photocatalytic H-2 generation activity is mainly ascribed to the efficient charge transfer and abundant active sites by introducing the porous CoxP nanosheets. The photocatalytic mechanism of the CoxP/Mn0.35Cd0.65S composites is investigated by the photoluminescence (PL), time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL), electrochemical, and photoelectrochemical (PEC) tests. This work presents a viable strategy to design a 2D/0D hybrid system containing porous cobalt phosphides nanosheets and MnCdS solid solutions for noble-metal-free photocatalytic application. (C) 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

This paper presents the successful development of a visible-light-driven semiconductor material with excellent photocatalytic performance for hydrogen evolution. By introducing porous CoxP nanosheets, the H-2 production rate is significantly improved. The material exhibits high hydrogen production rate and significant quantum efficiency under visible light, and has higher H-2 production rate compared to pure Mn0.35Cd0.65S and bare CdS.