Abstract
Noble-metal-free photocatalysts CuS/Cd0.3Zn0.7S and NizCd0.3Zn0.7S1+z were prepared by a two-step technique. The photocatalysts were characterized by a wide range of experimental techniques: X-ray diffraction, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, low-temperature N2 adsorption/desorption, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and UV–vis spectroscopy. The photocatalytic activity was tested in a batch reactor in the hydrogen evolution from aqueous solutions of Na2S/Na2SO3 under visible light irradiation (λ > 420 nm). The activity of CuS/Cd0.3Zn0.7S photocatalysts was shown to exceed that of NizCd0.3Zn0.7S1+z photocatalysts likely because of the hetero-junctions between CuS and Cd0.3Zn0.7S nanoparticles. The highest photocatalytic activity (3520 μmol g−1 h−1) was possessed by 1 mol% CuS/Cd0.3Zn0.7S. A model of the photocatalytic hydrogen production from aqueous solutions of Na2S/Na2SO3 was proposed on the basis of the Langmuir–Hinshelwood mechanism.
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