Phosphorous-doped cadmium sulfide hollow octahedrons for enhanced visible-light photocatalytic H2 evolution

Currently, promoting solar absorption ability and photoexcited charge separation and transfer of semiconductors is of significance for enhancing their solar-to-hydrogen (STH) efficiency. Hollow-structured design and element doping strategy have proven to be effective in strengthening solar absorption and manipulating the charge dynamics. Herein, an ingenious design of doping phosphors (P) into hollow-structured CdS octahedrons is applied for achieving effective photocatalytic hydrogen production. The P-doped CdS semiconductor has a hollow interior for enhancing the photon absorbance and a narrow bandgap with upshift of valence band for facilitating photoinduced charge separation and transport, all of which contribute to their improved photocatalytic performance. Consequently, the synergistic effect in the designed archicture leads to an enhanced hydrogen production rate of up to 9.58 mmol$g-1 h-1, being about 11.7 fold higher than the reported CdS nanorods. Our work offers a new way for developing other types of sulfur-based semiconductors towards effective solar-to-hydrogen conversion. (c) 2023 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.