Fabrication of CoTiO3/g-C3N4 Hybrid Photocatalysts with Enhanced H2 Evolution: Z-Scheme Photocatalytic Mechanism Insight

A novel direct Z-scheme CoTiO3/g-C3N4 (CT-U) photocatalytic system with different weight percentage of CoTiO3 was synthesized using a facile in situ growth method for H2 evolution from water splitting. The as-prepared CT-U composites composed of 1D CoTiO3 microrod and 2D g-C3N4 nanosheet were characterized by various techniques including XRD, SEM, TEM, XPS, FTIR, and UV–vis. Results demonstrate that the CT-U composite photocatalysts were successfully fabricated, with intimate interfacial contact and heterojunction interaction between g-C3N4 and CoTiO3 which can significantly boost the photocatalytic activity compared with prinstine g-C3N4 and CoTiO3. The most enhanced H2-evolution rate of 858 μmol h–1 g–1 and high quantum efficiency (38.4% at 365 nm, 3.23% at 420 ± 20 nm) are achieved at an optimal 0.15% CT-U. Meanwhile, the 0.15% CT-U sample exhibits good photocatalytic stability in recycling H2 evolution. Accordingly, direct Z-scheme mechanism capable of leading efficient charge carrier separation and strong reduction ability for enhanced H2 production was proposed, and further evidenced by PL, photoelectrochemical analysis, and ESR assay.