Enhanced Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production over Graphene Oxide–Cadmium Sulfide Nanocomposite under Visible Light Irradiation

Abstract

A series of graphene oxide (GO)–cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanocomposites were fabricated via a facile precipitation process by using Cd(Ac)2, Na2S, and prefabricated GO as raw materials. The obtained GO–CdS nanocomposites are composed of CdS nanoparticles with an average diameter of ca.10 nm, which are well dispersed and immobilized on GO sheets. By using Na2S/Na2SO3 as sacrificial reagent, the GO–CdS nanocomposites exhibit higher photoactivity for hydrogen production than the bare CdS under visible-light irradiation. Among various composite photocatalysts prepared, 5 wt % GO–CdS shows maximum hydrogen production efficiency. Our findings demonstrate that the coupled GO can serve as CdS supporting matrix, cocatalyst, and electron acceptor for effective charge separation, and therefore provide an inexpensive means to achieve high-performance visible-light-driven photocatalysts for hydrogen production without noble metal-loading.