Highly efficient photocatalytic hydrogen generation by incorporating CdS into ZnCr-layered double hydroxide interlayer

Abstract

CdS-pillared ZnCr–LDH nanohybrid was prepared by incorporating CdS nanoparticles into the interlayer of ZnCr–LDH nanosheets via an exfoliation–restacking route. The resultant nanohybrid exhibits an interlayer spacing of 2.50 nm and a mesoporous texture with a specific surface area of 86 m² g⁻¹. It was revealed that there exists a strong electronic coupling between the two components in the pillared heterostructure, which remarkably suppresses the photogenerated electron–hole recombination. The as-prepared nanohybrid displayed significantly enhanced photocatalytic activity. Its H₂-evolution rates were as high as 374 μmol h⁻¹ g⁻¹ with a quantum efficiency of 42.6% and 2164 μmol h⁻¹ g⁻¹ with a quantum efficiency of 48.2% under visible and UV-visible light, respectively, which were far superior to those of its parents ZnCr–LDH and CdS. The present findings clearly demonstrate that the self-assembly of CdS–LDHs is quite effective in synthesizing novel LDHs-based visible-light-driven photocatalysts with high performance in hydrogen evolution from water splitting.