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Construction of Amorphous CoS/CdS Nanoparticles Heterojunctions for Visible–Light–Driven Photocatalytic H2 Evolution

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Abstract

Due to the poor photocatalytic hydrogen evolution ability of pure CdS, we need to develop a photocatalytic hydrogen evolution catalyst with high activity and no precious metal doping. Therefore, in this article, we used a simple hydrothermal synthesis of CdS nanoparticles, using water as a carrier, loading a small amount of amorphous CoS, by changing the loading ratio of amorphous CoS, synthesized TYPE–II type heterojunction composite catalyst CCS. The successful synthesis of the composite catalyst CCS was verified by XRD, SEM and other characterization methods. UV–vis, PL and other characterization showed that the supported amorphous CoS could significantly improve the photocatalytic activity of CdS, and the photochemical detection also showed that the performance of composite catalyst CCS was better than that of pure CdS. Using Na2S and Na2SO3 mixed solution as electron sacrificial agent, the hydrogen production performance of CCS composite catalyst was determined through hydrogen evolution experiment and cyclic stability experiment. It was found that the sacrificial agent had a great promotion effect on the hydrogen production performance of photocatalyst. It was found that the hydrogen production rate of the composite catalyst could reach 2.01 mmol·g−1·h−1, which was 6.3 times of the pure CdS. This study offers a novel approach for the design of amorphous–based nanostructures as efficient hydrogen evolution cocatalysts.

Graphic Abstract

First, CdS are excited by light, consuming S2− and SO32− ions in the sacrificial agent, generating a large number of electrons and holes. Due to the energy difference between the conducting band (CB) of CdS and amorphous CoS, the electrons are transferred from the surface of CdS to the conducting band (CB) of amorphous CoS, while the electrons obtained from water and H+ in the sacrificial agent are reduced to H2. The amorphous CoS is used as the transfer medium of electron acceptor, and the synergistic effect between heterojunctions is used to improve the charge separation efficiency and electron transfer rate. Therefore, the photocatalytic hydrogen production effect of the composite catalyst CCS–7 has been greatly improved.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Ningxia Province (NZ17262).

Funding

This work was financially supported by the Open Project of State Key Laboratory of High–efficiency Utilization of Coal and Green Chemical Engineering, Ningxia University (2019-KF-36).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, North Minzu University, Yinchuan, 750021, People’s Republic of China

    Xuanhao Li, Jing Xu, Lingjiao Li, Sheng Zhao, Min Mao, Zeying Liu & Yanru Li

  2. State Key Laboratory of High-Efficiency Utilization of Coal and Green Chemical Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, 750021, People’s Republic of China

    Jing Xu

  3. Ningxia Key Laboratory of Solar Chemical Conversion Technology, North Minzu University, Yinchuan, 750021, People’s Republic of China

    Jing Xu

  4. Key Laboratory for Chemical Engineering and Technology, State Ethnic Affairs Commission, North Minzu University, Yinchuan, 750021, People’s Republic of China

    Jing Xu

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  1. Xuanhao Li
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  2. Jing Xu
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  3. Lingjiao Li
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  4. Sheng Zhao
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  5. Min Mao
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Correspondence to Jing Xu.

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Li, X., Xu, J., Li, L. et al. Construction of Amorphous CoS/CdS Nanoparticles Heterojunctions for Visible–Light–Driven Photocatalytic H2 Evolution. Catal Lett 151, 2408–2419 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10562-020-03468-6

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