Construction of schottky-assisted Z-scheme heterojunction Cd0.3Zn0.7S@Ti3C2/Ag/CeO2 boosted carriers charge separation for efficient photocatalytic hydrogen production

The purposeful modulation of interfacial charge transfer pathways in heterogeneous structures is an innovative and feasible strategy to improve photocatalysis efficiency. However, it is often characterized by difficulties in charge separation and transport and the high charge recombination limits its applications. Herein, a Cd 0.3 Zn 0.7 S-based heterostructure of Cd 0.3 Zn 0.7 S@Ti 3 C 2 /Ag/CeO 2 was fabricated in which the efficient electron transfer route was designed by synergistic action of Z-scheme and Schottky junction. Serial characterizations and Density-Functional Theory calculations identify the Schottky junction promoted the electrons in Cd 0.3 Zn 0.7 S to transfer to Ti 3 C 2 , whereas the Z-scheme heterojunction accelerated the electrons transfer from CeO 2 to Cd 0.3 Zn 0.7 S@Ti 3 C 2 with Ag acting as the electronic intermediary. Significantly, the optimized Cd 0.3 Zn 0.7 S@Ti 3 C 2 /Ag/CeO 2 exhibited stronger photocatalytic H 2 evolution of 16.3 mmol·g −1 ·h −1 with an apparent quantum efficiency of 29.8 % at 420 nm, which was 4.2 times higher than the pristine Cd 0.3 Zn 0.7 S material. This work offers valuable insights into realizing the desired charge transfer route through artificial heterointerface and a new possibility for applying Cd 1-x Zn x S materials in photocatalytic hydrogen production.