Construction and Photocatalytic Hydrogen Generation Properties of Z-Scheme CdS/UiO-66(Ce) Heterojunction

The construction of efficient Z-scheme heterojunctions is considered as a promising approach to improve the transfer and separation of photogenerated carries in the field of photocatalytic hydrogen evolution from water splitting. Herein, a novel CdS/UiO-66(Ce) with Z-scheme heterostructure is successfully fabricated from metal sulfide CdS and cerium-based UiO-66 metal–organic framework via a hydrothermal method. The Z-scheme CdS/UiO-66(Ce) heterojunctions can provide abundant active centers, broaden the response range to visible-light region, accelerate the transfer of interfacial charges, and suppress the recombination rate of photogenerated electron–hole pairs. As a result, CdS/UiO-66(Ce) (ω(CdS) = 30%) exhibits a hydrogen production rate of 1.975 mmol g −1 h −1 , which is 19.1 times higher than that of UiO-66(Ce). Overall, this article may provide a new pathway for the rational design of efficient Z-scheme heterojunctions with photocatalytic hydrogen evolution. Graphical The Z-scheme heterojunction is a pivotal design strategy in photocatalysis for balancing efficient charge separation and strong redox capability. In this article, a Z-scheme CdS/UiO-66(Ce) heterojunction is constructed by combining cerium-based metal–organic framework UiO-66(Ce) with CdS and achieved efficient photocatalytic water splitting for 1.975 mmol g −1 h −1 hydrogen evolution under visible light, which is 19.1 times higher than UiO-66(Ce).