Boosting the performance of visible light‐driven WO 3 /g‐C 3 N 4 anchored with BiVO 4 nanoparticles for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

Abstract

In this article, a ternary WO3/g-C3N4@ BiVO4 composites were prepared using eco-friendly hydrothermal method to produce efficient hydrogen energy through water in the presence of sacrificial agents. The prepared samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area, and photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL) emission spectroscopy. The experimental study envisages the formation of 2-D nanostructures and observed that such kinds of nanostructures could provide more active sites for photocatalytic reduction of water and their inherent reactive-species mechanism. The results showed the excellent photocatalytic performance (432 μmol h−1 g−1) for 1.5% BiVO4 nanoparticles in WO3/g-C3N4 composite when compared with pure WO3 and BiVO4. The optical properties and photocatalytic activity measurement confirmed that BiVO4 nanoparticles in WO3/g-C3N4 photocatalyst inhibited the recombination of photogenerated electron and holes and enhanced the reduction reactions for H2 production. The enhanced photocatalytic efficiency of the composite nanostructures may be attributed to wide absorption region of visible light, large surface area, and efficient separation of electrons/holes pairs owing to synergistic effects between BiVO4 and WO3/g-C3N4. The prepared samples would be a precise optimal photocatalyst to increase their suppliers for worldwide applications especially in energy harvesting.