Interfacial‐Engineered Co3S4/MnCdS Heterostructure for Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

Abstract

Herein, a novel non‐noble metal photocatalyst Co3S4/MnCdS (CS/MCS) for highly efficient hydrogen evolution has been successfully prepared through a simple hydrothermal method. Due to the work function difference between CS and MCS, an interfacial internal electric field is formed at the interface region of CS/MCS when the two components are in intimate contact. Upon light illumination, the photogenerated charge carriers transfer in S‐scheme‐like type through the interfacial CoS bonds. This facilitates charge separation and diffusion and broadens light absorption of the photocatalyst. Thus, the obtained CS/MCS composite shows a superior photocatalytic performance of 7,999.89 μmol h−1 g−1 with a 4.88% apparent quantum efficiency at 420 nm and a good photostability (about 96.2% H2 evolution retention over 5 cycles). To the best of our knowledge, this is a rare research on S‐scheme heterostructure characteristic of type‐I energy band alignment. This work provides new ideas for developing more efficient noble‐metal‐free photocatalysts for hydrogen evolution.