Ultrahigh photocatalytic hydrogen evolution performance of coupled 1D CdS/1T-phase dominated 2D WS2 nanoheterojunctions

Solar-powered photocatalytic hydrogen production from water using semiconductors provides an eco-friendly and promising approach for converting solar energy into hydrogen fuel. Bulk semiconductors generally suffer from certain limitations, such as poor visible-light utilization, rapid recombination of charge carriers, and low catalytic capability. The key challenge is to develop visible-light-driven heterojunction photocatalysts that are stable and highly active during the water splitting process. Here, we demonstrate the integration of one-dimensional (1D) CdS nanorods with two-dimensional (2D) 1T-phase dominated WS2 nanosheets for constructing mixed-dimensional heterojunctions for the photocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). The resulting 1D CdS/2D WS2 nanoheterojunction exhibited an ultrahigh hydrogen-evolution activity of similar to 70 mmol.g(-1).h(-1) that was visible to the naked eye, as well as long-term stability under visible light illumination. The results reveal that the synergy of hybrid nanoarchitectures and intimate interfacial contact between the 1D CdS nanorods and 1T-phase dominated 2D WS2 nanosheets facilitates charge carrier transport, which is beneficial for achieving superior hydrogen evolution. (C) 2022, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.