Controllable fabrication of visible-light-driven CoSx/CdS photocatalysts with direct Z-scheme heterojunctions for photocatalytic Cr(VI) reduction with high efficiency

Abstract Visible-light-driven and ultra-stable CoSx/CdS photocatalysts were controllably fabricated by the ZIF-67-templated one-pot solvothermal route for highly efficient photocatalytic Cr(VI) reduction. It was discovered that the resulting CoSx/CdS composites could present different photocatalytic activities controllably depending on the CoSx-to-CdS molar ratios used. The one with 1/16 M ratio could display the highest photocatalytic reduction performance for Cr(VI) with the efficiency up to 100% within 30 min, which is 5.6-fold and 2.1-fold higher than that of pristine CoSx and CdS, respectively. Herein, the components of CoSx and CdS with well-matched energy-band structures might serve separately as the electrons donor and the holes quencher to prolong the lifetime of photogenerated electrons in CoSx/CdS composites. A direct Z-scheme heterojunction could be thus constructed for promoting the charge carrier transferring with the improved redox abilities, leading to the robust photocatalysis of CoSx/CdS photocatalyst. Moreover, the developed CoSx/CdS photocatalyst could present superior stability with the structure and activity well survived after five photocatalytic cycles. This work may pave the way towards the controllable construction of a direct Z-scheme photocatalytic system by synergistically combining two kinds of components with matched energy-band structures, achieving the enhanced photocatalysis for the wide applications in the environmental remediation field.