Efficient water splitting over a hybrid photocatalyst with (002) active facets and heterostructure

Abstract

A series of P-CdS@P-MWO_x (M = Ni, Mn, Co, Zn, Fe, Cu) hybrid photocatalysts was constructed using different transition metal polyoxometalates [SiW₁₁M(H₂O)O₃₉]ⁿ⁻ as precursors via a pyrolysis–phosphidation strategy. Under visible light irradiation (λ = 420 nm), P-CdS@P-NiWO_x shows a good H₂ evolution rate of 418.4 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹ and an AQE of 29.9% at 420 nm without adding a sacrificial reagent, which is a nearly 140-fold enhancement over CdS. This study provides a feasible strategy for designing efficient photocatalysts with highly active facets and heterostructure.