In-situ growth of 0D/2D Ni2P quantum dots/red phosphorus nanosheets with p-n heterojunction for efficient photocatalytic H2 evolution under visible light

Abstract

Tailoring the morphology and microstructure of catalyst is of great importance for improving photocatalytic activity. In this work, intercalating Ni2+ as a chemical scissor to fabricate 0D/2D Ni2P quantum dots/red phosphorus nanosheets photocatalyst via a facile and mild in-situ hydrothermal method was reported. Amongst the catalysts examined 0.1Ni2P/red P exhibited extremely high H2 evolution (265.43 μmol·g−1·h−1) under visible-light irradiation (λ ≥ 420 nm), which is 38.58 and 3.61 times higher than pure red P and 1 wt% Pt/red P, respectively. The characterization of the 0.1Ni2P/red P photocatalyst showed that Ni2P exists in the form of quantum dots and red phosphorus presents multi-layered characteristics. The possible formation mechanism of Ni2P QDs and red phosphorus nanosheets was proposed and the reasons for 0.1Ni2P/red P with such a high rate of H2 evolution were systematically investigated.