Anchoring ZnIn2S4 nanosheets on oxygen-vacancy NiMoOx nanorods for efficient photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

Photocatalytic hydrogen evolution (PHE) from water splitting is one of the ideal choices for preparing renewable clean fuels in the future. Herein, a novel ZnIn2S4 (ZIS) nanosheets anchored oxygen vacancies NiMoOx(NMOx) nanorods (NMOx@ZIS) heterostructures were successfully prepared by high-temperature hydrogen reduction and subsequent solvothermal method. The as-prepared NMOx@ZIS-2.0 displays the highest PHE activity of 5.71 mmol·g−1·h−1 (with an optimized apparent quantum efficiency of 8.3 % at 420 nm) under visible light irradiation, which is approximately 11.2 times higher than pure ZIS. Moreover, the NMOx@ZIS composite exhibits excellent stability. Thanks to the construction of type II heterojunction between NMOx and ZIS, the recombination of photogenerated electron-hole (e--h+) pairs are effectively suppressed, thereby significantly improving the PHE activity of NMOx@ZIS composite. Besides, the presence of oxygen vacancies further inhibits the recombination of photogenerated e--h+ and provides more active reaction sites for H2 generation. The excellent photocatalytic activity and superior stability contributed to the application of NMOx@ZIS composite in the field of photocatalysis. © 2024 Elsevier B.V.