In situ fabrication of a novel CdS/ZnIn(2)S(4)/g-C(3)N(4) ternary heterojunction with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic performance

In this study, a novel g-C(3)N(4)-based ternary heterojunction was rationally designed and constructed by the in situ growth of ZnIn(2)S(4) nanosheets and CdS nanoparticles onto the g-C(3)N(4) nanosheets using a facile two-step oil-bath method. Through optimizing the proportion of ZnIn(2)S(4) and CdS component, g-C(3)N(4) nanosheets coupled with ZnIn(2)S(4) nanosheets and CdS nanoparticles (denoted as CdS/ZnIn(2)S(4)/g-C(3)N(4)) exhibited obviously higher photocatalytic properties for RhB removal than the single-component and dual-component systems. Among the as-obtained ternary photocatalysts, it was found that the ternary CdS/ZnIn(2)S(4)/g-C(3)N(4)-0.2 photocatalyst displayed the optimum photocatalytic property (96%) within a short time (30 min), which was almost 27.42 and 1.17 times higher than that of pure g-C(3)N(4) and binary ZnIn(2)S(4)/g-C(3)N(4)-0.7 composite. The excellent activity of the ternary CdS/ZnIn(2)S(4)/g-C(3)N(4) heterostructure is assigned to the synergetic effects of CdS nanoparticles, ZnIn(2)S(4) nanosheets and g-C(3)N(4) nanosheets, which not only broaden the visible-light absorption range, but also improve the charge mobility and separation rate, thus boosting the visible-light-driven photocatalytic property of g-C(3)N(4).