Fabrication of Hierarchical Co<sub>9</sub>S<sub>8</sub>@ZnAgInS Heterostructured Cages for Highly Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Generation and Pollutants Degradation
Feifei Zhao, Dongguang Yin, Kyu Kyu Khaing, Bingqi Liu, Tao Chen, Linlin Deng, Luqiu Li, Xiandi Guo, Jun Wang, Songtao Xiao, Yinggen Ouyang, Jinliang Liu, Yong Zhang
Abstract
In the present study, a hierarchical Co9S8@ZnAgInS heterostructural cage was developed for the first time which can photocatalytically produce hydrogen and degrade organic pollutants with high efficiency. First, the Co9S8 dodecahedron was synthesized using a metal–organic framework (MOFs) material, ZIF-67, as a precursor, then two kinds of metal sulfide semiconductors were elaborately integrated into a hierarchical hollow heterostructural cage with coupled heterogeneous shells and 2D nanosheet subunits. The artfully designed hollow heterostructural composite exhibited remarkable photocatalytic activity without using any cocatalysts, with a 9395.3 μmol g–1 h–1 H2 evolution rate and high degradation efficiency for RhB. The significantly enhanced photocatalytic activity can be attributed to the unique architecture and intimate-contact interface between Co9S8 and ZnAgInS, which promote the transfer and separation of the photogenerated charges, increase light absorption, and offer large surface area and active sites. This work presents a new strategy to design highly active semiconductor photocatalysts by using MOF materials as precursors and coupling of metal sulfide semiconductors to form hollow architecture dodecahedron cages with an intimate interface.