A Metal-Organic-Framework-Derived G-C3n4/Alpha-Fe2o3 Hybrid For Enhanced Visible-Light-Driven Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

As one of the most efficient systems for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution, the Z-Scheme system, consisting of different semiconductors with a reversible donor-acceptor pair, has attracted great attention. Considering the nontoxicity and low cost of photocatalysts, a series of g-C3N4/alpha Fe2O3 hybrids were rationally constructed based on the Z-Scheme mechanism for the first time, using a metal-organic framework template approach that can fine tune the compositions and properties of the hybrids. An optimized hybrid, g-C3N4/alpha-Fe2O3-2, exhibited prominent photocatalytic water splitting performance with a visible light response. Under irradiation of visible light (lambda > 420 nm), the hybrid shows a high durability and superior hydrogen production rate of 2066.2 mu molg(-1)h(-1) from water splitting, which is approximately three times greater than that of bulk g-C3N4 because of the effective separation of photo-excited charge carriers by two narrow band gap semiconductors, tightly coupled with the Z-Scheme structural feature.