Facile synthesis of porous 3D honeycomb-like ZnIn2S4 microspheres with improved photocatalytic activity for hydrogen evolution

Abstract

It is an important strategy to design a unique structure of materials in order to improve their photocatalytic performance. In this work, we successfully prepared a series of ZnIn₂S₄ (ZIS) microspheres with glutathione as the sulfur source and pore former by using a one-step hydrothermal method. The effect of temperature on the microtopography and pore structure of the as-synthesized ZIS was systematically examined. The optimal ZIS exhibited novel porous 3D honeycomb-like microspheres, which play a key role in prolonging the electron–hole pair lifetime, thereby favoring the enhancement of its photocatalytic activity. Specifically, this 160 °C-ZIS sample has the largest specific surface area of 228.56 m² g⁻¹, and its hydrogen production capacity reached 922.77 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹ without noble metals as cocatalysts. Therefore, the construction of such 3D honeycomb-like microspheres provides a potential feasibility in the future for designing multicomponent composites.