Greatly enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen production on CdS/(Pt/g-C3N4) via dual functions of Pt on semiconductors interface

Abstract

CdS and g-C3N4 are famous semiconductors in photocatalytic hydrogen evolution, however, their low efficiencies limit their further application. Here, a highly efficient ternary catalyst CdS/(Pt/g-C3N4) was reported and its photocatalytic hydrogen production activity reached up to 1465.9 μmol/h/g, which is 5.3 times of Pt/CdS and 4.0 times of Pt/g-C3N4, respectively. TEM and HRTEM images demonstrate the Pt nanoparticles exists on the interface of between CdS and g-C3N4 acting as a cocatalyst for hydrogen evolution. SPV spectra and electrochemical tests demonstrate that Pt as bridge between CdS and g-C3N4 also accelerates the electrons transforming which benefits for the inhibition of the recombination of photoexcited electrons and holes. This study demonstrated the dual roles of interface Pt and provides a new method to design a highly efficient photocatalyst.