Efficiently improved photocatalytic H2 production of Cd0.9Zn0.1S via the fabrication of S-scheme heterojunction with metal–organic framework derived NiFe2O4@C

Heterogeneous interface regulation acts a significant role in tailoring the intrinsic physicochemical property for achieving excellent photocatalytic H 2 evolution performance, which still faces a huge challenge. In this work, by comparing H 2 evolution property of various cadmium zinc sulphide (Cd x Zn 1−x S) solid solutions, 1-D Cd 0.9 Zn0 .1 S nanorods possessing the optimum photocatalytic H 2 evolution performance were obtained. Additionally, bimetallic metal organic framework (MOF)-derived NiFe 2 O 4 @C (NFO@C) microspheres with custom-built heterogeneous interface were successfully prepared via a solvothermal/pyrolysis strategy. Moreover, NFO@C microspheres were assembled on Cd 0.9 Zn0 .1 S surface to fabricate a series of NFO@C/Cd 0.9 Zn 0.1 S heterojunction photocatalysts with varied contents of NFO@C. The NFO@C/Cd 0.9 Zn 0.1 S heterojunction with a NFO@C content of 20 wt% (abbreviated as NC20) exhibited the highest H 2 production rate of 96.25 mmol g –1  h −1 , which was 3.8 times that of Cd 0.9 Zn 0.1 S. Under a light wavelength of 420 and 450 nm, the apparent quantum efficiency of NC20 reached 34.8 % and 65.1 %, respectively. The photocatalytic H 2 evolution activity of NC20 remained stable after the 16-h cycle experiment, whereas the severe photocorrosion of Cd 0.9 Zn 0.1 S was encountered. Furthermore, the easy recyclability of NC20 should not be overlooked. The results of a series of material characterization clearly demonstrate that the introduction of NFO@C could efficiently improve light absorption and the photoinduced carrier separation capability of the composite photocatalysts. This study not only opens up a facile and controllable preparation way for the synthesis of heterojunction structures with tailored heterogeneous interfaces, but also offers a new sight to ameliorate the H 2 evolution capability, stability and recyclability of Cd x Zn 1−x S solid solutions.