One-step electrodeposition of amorphous MoSx - CdS on Ti mesh as a monolithic heterostructured photocatalyst for enhanced photocatalytic H2 evolution

Abstract

Exploiting large-size monolithic semiconductor photocatalyst sheet/layer with superior photocatalytic hydrogen production performances through facile and scalable methods is an important research direction in promoting the practical application of traditional particulate semiconductor photocatalyst, yet challenging. Here we constructed an amorphous MoSx - CdS monolithic heterostructured photocatalyst sheet (a-MoSx - CdS/Ti) with maximal size of ∼100 cm2 through a one-step potentiostatic electrodeposition process of 5 min on titanium mesh used as photocatalyst support. Owing to synergic effects of favorable light absorption, abundant active sites for proton reduction, effective photogenerated charge separation and robust structural integrity, the a-MoSx - CdS/Ti not only exhibits an optimized H2 generation rate of 4476 μmol h−1g−1, but also demonstrates excellent operability during photocatalytic H2 generation and subsequent recycling processes, greatly improving its applicability. This work presents a straightforward and practical route to produce efficient, robust and easily operable photocatalytic H2 production system which expectantly finds promising practical applications in photocatalysis, photoelectrocatalysis and beyond.