NiO Quantum Dot Modified TiO2 toward Robust Hydrogen Production Performance

Quantum dots (QDs) have great potential to build heterojunctions for efficient photocatalytic hydrogen production because of the quantum size effects, whereas they are limited by the rigorous preparation. Herein, we report a facile sacrificial coating strategy toward the construction of the NiO QDs/TiO2 heterojunction. Shorter transmission distance of carriers and higher crystallinity between NiO QDs and TiO2 substrate are achieved to minimize the recombination of photoinduced electrons and holes. As a result, excellent performance of 1.35 mmol h–1 g–1 over the NiO QDs/TiO2 sample is achieved, which is 37 times higher than that of NiO/TiO2 and 56 times higher than that of pure TiO2. Furthermore, this is one of the best performances reported in heterojunctions made of NiO and TiO2.