Efficient photocatalytic waste to hydrogen conversion by metalloid Ti3C2Tx decorated AgInZnS

Abstract

Photocatalytic hydrogen production from wastewater is an effective strategy to alleviate the increasingly energy crisis. In this work, ultrathin Ti3C2Tx decorated AgInZnS (AIZS-TiC) polysulfide was designed as an efficient photocatalyst for hydrogen production from tetracycline (TC) wastewater. Compared with pure AIZS, the AIZS-TiC exhibited an improved photocatalytic hydrogen production rate of 226 μmol/g/h with synergistic TC degradation. In addition, the hydrogen evaluation rate can achieve 1287 μmol/g/h under 300 W Xe light irradiation with triethanolamine as the hole sacrifice agent, which is more than three times that of pure AIZS. The systematic mechanism study indicated that the introduction of novel metalloid TiC effectively optimizes the morphology and energy band structure of AIZS. Furthermore, the matched work functions of two materials ensure the establishment of Schottky junction between AIZS and metalloid TiC, thereby enhancing the surface-active site and inter-facial charge transfer of the photocatalyst. These findings provide a valuable reference for the design and application of polysulfide and metalloid TiC in the field of photocatalytic waste to energy conversion.