Construction of hierarchical Fe2O3@MnO2 core/shell nanocube supported C3N4 for dual Z-scheme photocatalytic water splitting

A dual Z-scheme fe 2 O 3 @MnO 2 core/shell nanocube supported C 3 N 4 ternary composite is rationally designed and successfully fabricated as a photocatalyst for water splitting. The as-prepared Fe 2 O 3 @MnO 2 /C 3 N 4 ternary composite exhibits an enhanced visible light-induced absorbance capacity and superior photocatalytic activity for direct water splitting than that of pure g-C 3 N 4 . The photocatalytic efficiency is investigated by varying amounts of Fe 2 O 3 @MnO 2 core/shell nanocubes in the ternary composite (10%wt, 20%wt and 30%wt). When the mass fraction of Fe 2 O 3 @MnO 2 is determined to be 20%, the hydrogen evolution rate would achieve the maximum with a value of 124 μmol*h −1 . The improved photocatalytic performance of Fe 2 O 3 @MnO 2 /C 3 N 4 ternary composite can be mainly attributed to improved visible light absorption range and construction of an effective dual Z-scheme interfacial heterojunction with a rapid separation and transfer of electron-hole pairs.