Novel hollow core-shell Zn0.5Cd0.5S@ZnIn2S4/MoS2 nanocages with Z-scheme heterojunction for enhanced photocatalysis of hydrogen generation

The development of low-cost and efficient metal sulfide photocatalysts through morphological and structural design is vital to the advancement of the hydrogen economy. However, metal sulfide semiconductor photocatalysts still suffer from low carrier separation and poor solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiencies. Herein, two-dimensional ZnIn 2 S 4 nanosheets were grown on Zn 0.5 Cd 0.5 S hollow nanocages to construct Zn 0.5 Cd 0.5 S@ZnIn 2 S 4 hollow nanocages for the first time. Novel hollow core–shell Zn 0.5 Cd 0.5 S@ZnIn 2 S 4 /MoS 2 nanocages with Z-scheme heterojunction structures were obtained by incorporating MoS 2 nanosheet co-catalyst via the solvothermal method. The resulting Zn 0.5 Cd 0.5 S@ZnIn 2 S 4 /MoS 2 exhibited unique structural and compositional advantages, leading to remarkable photocatalytic hydrogen evolution rates of up to 8.5 mmol·h −1 ·g −1 without the use of any precious metal co-catalysts. This rate was 10.6-fold and 7.1-fold higher compared to pure ZnIn 2 S 4 and Zn 0.5 Cd 0.5 S, respectively. Moreover, the optimized Zn 0.5 Cd 0.5 S@ZnIn 2 S 4 /MoS 2 photocatalyst outperformed numerous reported ZnIn 2 S 4 -based photocatalysts and some ZnIn 2 S 4 -based photocatalysts based on precious metal co-catalysts. The exceptional photocatalytic performance of Zn 0.5 Cd 0.5 S@ZnIn 2 S 4 /MoS 2 can be attributed to the Z-scheme heterojunction of core–shell structure that enhanced charge carrier separation and transport, as well as the co-catalytic action of MoS 2 . Overall, the proposed Zn 0.5 Cd 0.5 S@ZnIn 2 S 4 /MoS 2 with heterojunction structure is a promising candidate for the preparation of efficient photocatalysts for solar-to-hydrogen energy conversion.