Boron doped 1T phase MoS 2 as a cocatalyst for promoting photocatalytic H 2 evolution of g-C 3 N 4 nanosheets

As one of the 2D transition metal sulfides, 1T phase MoS 2 nanosheets (NSs) have been studied because of their distinguished conductivity and suitable electronic structure. Nevertheless, the active sites are limited to a small number of edge sites only, while the basal plane is catalytically inert. Herein, we report that boron (B) doped 1T phase MoS 2 NSs can replace precious metals as a co-catalyst to assist in photocatalytic H 2 production of 2D layered g-C 3 N 4 nanosheets (g-C 3 N 4 NSs). The H 2 evolution rate of prepared B-MoS 2 @g-C 3 N 4 composites with 15 wt% B-MoS 2 (B-MoS 2 @g-C 3 N 4 -15, 1612.75 & mu;mol h -1 g -1 ) is 52.33 times of pure g-C 3 N 4 NSs (30.82 & mu;mol h -1 g -1 ). Furthermore, the apparent quantum efficiency (AQE) of B-MoS 2 @g-C 3 N 4 -15 composites under the light at & lambda; = 370 nm is calculated and reaches 5.54%. The excellent photocatalytic performance of B-MoS 2 @g-C 3 N 4 -15 composites is attributed to the B ions doping inducing the distortion of 1T phase MoS 2 crystal, which can activate more base planes to offer more active sites for H 2 evolution reaction (HER). This work of B-MoS 2 @g-C 3 N 4 composites offers experience in the progress of effective and low-price photocatalysts for HER. & COPY; 2023 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Chemical Society and Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.