Bimetallic Sulfide MCdS Modified with TiO2 Nanoneedle Cocatalyst for Enhancing Photocatalytic H2‐evolution

Abstract Metal ion doping and composite materials preparation are the effective means to improve the activity of CdS photocatalysts. In this work, TiO 2 /MCdS (M=Zn, Ni) were synthetized by two steps hydrothermal method. The morphology, elemental composition and optical properties of TiO 2 /MCdS photocatalysts were characterized via XRD, SEM, TEM, XPS and UV‐Vis. Interestingly, TiO 2 nanoneedles were able to grow inside ZnCdS particles, which caused a strong interaction between TiO 2 and ZnCdS was formed. However, TiO 2 nanoneedle and NiCdS were not closely combined. As a result, the TiO 2 /ZnCdS (581.8 μmol ⋅ g −1 ⋅ h −1 ) possessed the optimal H 2 production rate and showed a 1.5‐fold improvement compared to TiO 2 /NiCdS. This improvement of photocatalytic activity was mainly attributed to the effective separation of photogenerated electron hole pairs and the synergistic catalysis of water decomposition into hydrogen by TiO 2 nanneedle‐assisted catalyst. Thus, metal ion doping and TiO 2 nanoneedle as co‐catalyst could improve the photocatalytic H 2 production activity of CdS more effectively.