Modification of g‐C₃N₄ Photocatalyst with Flower‐like ReS₂ for Highly Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

Abstract

Heterojunction strategy has proven to be an effective approach for overcoming the quick photoexcited charge carrier recombination of graphitic carbon nitride (g‐C3N4) and facilitating its photocatalytic performances. Bearing the merits of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) in mind, in this work, a novel flower‐like ReS2 coupled with layered g‐C3N4 was constructed via a facile hydrothermal route. The hybrid ReS2/g‐C3N4 catalysts create excellent photocatalytic hydrogen evolution without any additional co‐catalyst. Under visible‐light irradiation, the optimized 3 wt % ReS2/g‐C3N4 heterojunction exhibited a hydrogen evolution rate 8 times that of pristine g‐C3N4, maintaining a stable heterojunction after multiple photocatalytic cycles. ReS2/g‐C3N4 integrates the merits of both the configuration of a heterojunction and the formation of spatially conductive network, which effectively accelerate the transfer of photoinduced carrier. This work not only presents a marked ReS2/g‐C3N4 heterojunction photocatalyst, but provides more possibility for expanding applications in electrocatalysis, photothermal catalysis and energy storage.

Photoinduced Generation of Metastable Sulfur Vacancies Enhancing the Intrinsic Hydrogen Evolution Behavior of Semiconductors

“…[48,49] Compared with pristine TiO 2 , the intensity of emission peaks of CdS/TiO 2 samples showed obvious decrease, indicating that the recombination of photogenerated electronÀhole pairs through a radiative pathway was suppressed. [50][51][52] Furthermore, a much more rapidly decay of PL lifetime for CdS/TiO 2 samples (Figure S17, Supporting Information) demonstrates that the presence of CdS nanoparticles could effectively extract electrons from TiO 2 semiconductor and inhibit the electrons recombining with holes.…”

A Comprehensive Review on Graphitic Carbon Nitride for Carbon Dioxide Photoreduction

“…Compared with other modification procedures, such as elemental doping or surface functionalization, the impact of organic molecular alteration is more pronounced than other methods. [420] In the case of g-C 3 N 4 materials, such modifications not only affect the electronic properties of the material but are also very effective for regulating the physicochemical parameters, such as adjusting the pore size and the oleophilic/hydrophilic nature of the surface. Wang et al [475] synthesized aromatic ring-mod-ified g-C 3 N 4 materials by combining aromatic chemicals such as 2-aminobenzonitrile, aniline, and benzonitrile with DCDA as the primary g-C 3 N 4 precursor (Figure 29a).…”

“…Tuning the defect engineering process and changing the geometry and electronic structure of photocatalysts are just some of the fundamentally available techniques that can be used to boost the overall performance of the catalyst. [ 420 ] Many other methods to enhance the photochemical characteristics of g‐C 3 N 4 ‐based substances will be discussed in detail in the next section of this article.…”

Photocatalytic Applications of ReS2-Based Heterostructures

“…It is well established that heterostructures have numerous advantages in enhancing photocatalyst functions [ 1 , 41 , 42 ]. Rational alignment of ReS 2 with other semiconductors into a tandem structure can increase the range of light absorption across the solar spectrum and optimize its photocatalytic performance by inhibiting charge carrier recombination as well as promoting charge separation [ 34 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 ]. In this review, we provide mainly an overview of the recent progress on ReS 2 heterostructure, focusing on the synthesis methods and their photocatalytic applications.…”