Solar Light-Responsive ZnS/Reduced Graphene Oxide Photocatalysts for Enhanced Hydrogen Evolution

The photocatalytic hydrogen (H 2 ) evolution process under solar-light irradiation is a crucial fundamental step for solar energy exploitation. In our study, the ZnS/reduced graphene oxide (ZnS/rGO) composites were prepared using a simple solvothermal approach. The combination of detailed theoretical simulation calculations and comprehensive characterizations indicates that the rGO can greatly increase the capture of light, reduce the band gap, accelerate the transfer of photogenerated electrons, and provide more photo-induced carriers to participate in photocatalytic reactions. The as-formed optimized ZnS/rGO composites exhibit a remarkably superior photocatalytic H 2 production capacity of 0.30 mmol/g/h, up to 4.29 times over bare ZnS nanoparticles. The enhanced photocatalytic H 2 evolution performance of the ZnS/rGO composites was ascribed to the intimated hetero-interface between components and the efficient transfer of photo-generated electrons from ZnS to rGO. This work provides new insights into the semiconductor-graphene heterojunction photocatalyst for enhancing photocatalytic activity. Graphical