Nitrogen doped graphene supported mixed metal sulfide photocatalyst for high production of hydrogen using natural solar light

We have developed a strategy to prevent the photo-corrosion of cadmium sulfide nanorods (CdSNRs) by coating them with cerium sulfide (Ce2S3) as co-catalyst and N-doped Graphene (NG) for a solar light-driven H2 production application. The uniform deposition and coating of Ce2S3 and NG over the CdSNRs were confirmed by both FESEM and HRTEM analyses. The incorporation of Ce2S3 and NG into CdSNRs not only increased its stability but also extended its absorption in visible and NIR regions. As a result, the prepared CdSNRs/Ce2S3 photocatalysts produced -16,181 & mu;mol h-1 g-1 of H2 under solar light irradiation, which was - 10 times higher than the pure CdSNRs. Interestingly, N atom doped graphene-supported CdSNRs/Ce2S3 photocatalysts has shown a paramount effect on the H2 production by 24 times higher compared to bare CdSNRs (35,946 & mu;mol h- 1g-1). In addition, the NG-CdSNRs/Ce2S3 photocatalysts exhibited high stability up to 5 continuous cycles. The high stability was achieved due to the covering of CdSNRs by Ce2S3 and NG, which may effectively prevent the leaching out of S2- ions from CdSNRs. On the other hand, the NG played a dual role by preventing the photocorrosion and also improving the charge carrier separation as evidenced by the PL, TRPL, and Impedance studies. The present work may open a new direction in designing a highly photostable metal sulfide photocatalyst for energy conversion applications in aqueous medium.