Characteristic studies of Ta3N5/BSC@PANI nanocomposites for hydrogen production via water-splitting under visible light irradiation

Hydrogen (H2) production in water-splitting could be significantly increased by designing cost-effective photocatalysts with remarkable performance. The main objective of this study is to recognize the behavior of soot carbon-based metal nitrides nanocomposites on its photocatalytic activity when exposed to solar lights. This study synthesized a p-n heterojunction Ta3N5/PANI composite photocatalyst modified by eco-friendly and low-cost biomass soot carbon (BSC) using hydrothermal and chemisorption methods. BSC materials are photoactive when exposed to UV light because of their band gap (Eg < 4 eV), indicating they behave as semiconductors. Compared to pure Ta3N5, the hydrogen production rate of a photocatalyst containing polyaniline (PANI) can reach up to 76.9 μmol g−1 h−1, equivalent to 3.42 times superior to pristine Ta3N5. The formation of a p-n heterojunction at the interface of PANI and Ta3N5 was primarily responsible for improving the H2 evolution activity. This successfully prevents the self-photocorrosion of Ta3N5 by providing a rapid route for the migration and separation of photogenerated charges. It also confirms the long-term stability of the materials by repeating the experiments up to 6 cycles with more than 95 %.