Synergistic role of plasmonic Au-doped MOF with ZnIn2S4/MoS2 nanosheets for boosted photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

The construction of a well-defined and efficient Z-scheme heterostructure with enhanced photogenerated charge carriers and their rapid transfer is vital for realizing efficient photocatalytic hydrogen production, to achieve carbon neutrality. Herein, we study the H2 evolution reaction by rationally constructing a hybrid Au-anchored UiO-66-NH2 with localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) properties, embedded with ZnIn2S4/MoS2 nanosheets. Interestingly, the synergistic effect of excellent heterojunction, tunes additional catalytic active sites, provides effective separation of photogenerated charges at the junction interface and establishes a dedicated microenvironment for the boosted electron transfer. Notably, the optimized hybrid photocatalyst (Au6@U6N)15/ZIS/MS5 exhibits highly efficient H2 generation of 58.2 ​mmol ​g−1 ​h−1, which is almost 16 and 1.5 folds of the pristine ZIS and MS/U6N/ZIS, correspondingly. It has an apparent quantum efficiency of 19.6% at a wavelength of 420 ​nm, surpassing several reported MOF-based ZnIn2S4 photocatalytic H2 evolution activities. Significantly, this research provides insights into the design of interface-engineered plasmonic MOF with layered encapsulated heterostructures that elucidate the role of plasmonic LSPR effect and efficiently regulate the charge transfer with enhanced microchannels, hence boosting the visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity for realizing efficient green energy conversion.