One-Pot Hydrothermal Synthesis of MoS(2)/Zn(0.5)Cd(0.5)S Heterojunction for Enhanced Photocatalytic H(2) Production

A series of molybdenum disulfide (MoS(2))/Zn(0.)5Cd(0.5)S heterojunctions have been prepared via a mild one-pot hydrothermal method based on the optimization of composition content of primary photocatalyst. The photocatalysts demonstrated significantly improved visible light–driven photocatalytic activity toward H(2) evolution from water without using any noble metal cocatalyst. Among the as-prepared composites, 0.2% MoS(2)/Zn(0.5)Cd(0.5)S shows the best performance. The highest H(2) evolution rate reaches 21 mmol · g(−1) · h(−1), which is four times higher than that of pure Zn(0.5)Cd(0.5)S. The apparent quantum efficiency is about 46.3% at 425 nm. The superiority is attributed to the tight connection between MoS(2) and Zn(0.5)Cd(0.5)S by this facile one-step hydrothermal synthesis. As a result, the formation of the heterostructure introduces built-in electric field at the interface that facilitates vectorial charge transfer. More specifically, photogenerated electrons transfer to MoS(2) to conduct proton reduction, where the holes are retained on the surface of Zn(0.5)Cd(0.5)S to react with the sacrificial reagents. Moreover, the composite presents improved stability without notable activity decay after several cycled tests.