Construction of CoB/Mn0.5Cd0.5S photocatalyst with Schottky junction: Effective charge separation and highly efficient H2 evolution performance

In this paper, Mn0.5Cd0.5S (MCS) was prepared by hydrothermal method and CoB was introduced as a co-catalyst for the synthesis of CoB/Mn0.5Cd0.5S (CBMCS). After the characterization of UV–vis DRS, PL, photocurrent, EIS, LSV and Mott-Schottky, it is proved that the introduction of CoB plays a prominent role in inhibiting the photogenerated charge recombination and boosting the responsiveness to visible light. The photocatalytic hydrogen precipitation experiments revealed that the hydrogen evolution rate of CBMCS composite was up to 3810.0 μmol h−1 g−1, which was 7.0 times higher than MCS with a hydrogen precipitation rate of 543.3 μmol h−1 g−1, and 2.2 times higher than 1%Pt/MCS with a hydrogen evolution rate of 1729.1 μmol h−1 g−1 and kept excellent stability. Then by theoretical calculation and UPS, the work function was obtained to prove the formation of the Schottky junction between MCS and CoB. Obviously, this study provides a low-cost and effective co-catalyst to replace the precious metal Pt, offering a doable scheme to boost the photocatalytic activity of Mn0.5Cd0.5S.