Facile synthesis of CoO nanorod/C3N4 heterostructure photocatalyst for an enhanced pure water splitting activity

A heterostructured nanocomposite composed of two visible light responsive semiconductors of C3N4 and CoO nanorod was successfully synthesized via a facile hydrothermal method followed by thermal annealing. The high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM) results show a close interface between C3N4 and CoO heterojunction. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by hydrogen and oxygen evolution from water splitting under visible light illumination. The optimum CoO nanorod/C3N4 photocatalyst exhibits the highest hydrogen evolution of 92 mu mol h(-1). This enhancement in performance might be ascribed to the heterojunction established between the interfaces of CoO nanorod and C3N4, which greatly promoted efficient separation and transformation of photogenerated charges. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.