Undoped and Fe-doped core/shell ZnS@ZnO heterostructure for photocatalytic water splitting hydrogen evolution

Abstract

This paper reports undoped and Fe-doped ZnS/ZnO heterostructure for photocatalytic water splitting to evolve hydrogen. Zn(1-x)FexS nanorods were first prepared by a hydrothermal method and then partially oxidized in air to incorporate ZnO in the structure. The heterostructures were characterized by XRD, BET surface area measurement, FESEM-EDS, UV-DRS, and temperature programmed oxidation (TPO). When 34wt% ZnO is incorporated into the heterostructure its bandgap decreases by 0.34 eV. It is demonstrated that by doping 3mol% Fe into the heterostructure, the hydrogen evolution increases by 41%.