Abstract
Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) coupled with NiCoP nanoparticles with sizes around 5 nm have been fabricated via a controllable alcohothermal process. NiCoP is an excellent electron conductor and cocatalyst in photocatalytic reactions. The coupling between tiny NiCoP nanoparticles and g-C3N4 through in-situ fabrication strategy could be a promising way to eliminate the light screening effect, hinder the recombination of photo-induced charge carriers, and improve the charge transfer. The NiCoP/g-C3N4 nanohybrids exhibit an excellent photocatalytic activity in the hydrogen generation, with a significantly improved performance compared with original g-C3N4, CoP/g-C3N4 and Ni2P/g-C3N4, respectively. This study paves a new way to design transition metal phosphides-based photocatalysts for hydrogen production.
摘要
本文通过可控醇热反应将5nm磷化钴镍纳米颗粒负载在石墨相氮化碳上得到一种高效催化产氢催化剂. 磷化钴镍是优良的电子导体和光催化反应助催化剂. 通过原位生长法将微小的磷化钴镍纳米颗粒和氮化碳复合可有效消除磷化钴镍的光遮蔽效应, 同时抑制光生载流子的复合, 提高载流子的迁移率. 由此, 磷化钴镍/氮化碳纳米复合物表现出远高于纯氮化碳, 单独的磷化镍或磷化钴/氮化碳复合物的光催化产氢活性. 本研究为构筑过渡金属磷化物基光催化剂提供了崭新的思路.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51702234) and the Natural Science Foundation of Tianjin City (18JCQNJC78800).
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Ma B fabricated the NiCoP/C3N4 nanohybrids and tested the photocatalytic activity; Zhao J fabricated the samples for control experiment; Ge Z did the characterization; Chen Y and Yuan Z designed the experiment and wrote the manuscript.
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The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Bo Ma received his Bachelor’s degree in 2009, Master’s degree in 2013 and PhD in 2017 from Nankai University. His research interest focuses on the carbon-based non-noble metal materials for photocatalysis and electrocatalysis.
Yantao Chen received his BSc degree in 2009 from the University of Science and Technology of China and his PhD degree in 2014 from Brown University, USA. In 2015, he worked as a postdoctoral associate at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. In 2016, he joined Tianjin University of Technology as a full professor. His research interest lies in functional nanomaterials for electrochemical applications.
Zhihao Yuan obtained his PhD from the Institute of Solid State Physics, CAS, in 1996. Following post-doctoral experience in Tsinghua University, he joined Tianjin University of Technology as a full professor in 2002. His main research interest includes photoelectric nanomaterials and devices, nano-catalysis and nano-photocatalysis, and semiconductor-based gas sensor.
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Ma, B., Zhao, J., Ge, Z. et al. 5 nm NiCoP nanoparticles coupled with g-C3N4 as high-performance photocatalyst for hydrogen evolution. Sci. China Mater. 63, 258–266 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40843-019-1181-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40843-019-1181-y