Versatile Functional Porous Cobalt–Nickel Phosphide–Carbon Cocatalyst Derived from a Metal–Organic Framework for Boosting the Photocatalytic Activity of Graphitic Carbon Nitride

Abstract

Metal-organic framework-templated g-C₃N₄-NiCoP₂-porous carbon (PC) ternary hybrid nanomaterials were designed by taking full advantage of the metal-organic framework (MOF) derivative in the photocatalytic reaction for the first time. The MOF-templated porous structure could prevent the stacking of the carbon nitride nanosheet, and the carefully designed NiCoP₂, possessing low electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) overpotential and flat-band potential, could improve the separation as well as the utilization efficiency of photogenerated electron-hole pairs. Moreover, the ligand-templated porous carbon, acting as an interface mediator between g-C₃N₄ and the NiCoP₂ cocatalyst, could boost the charge carrier transport. Consequently, the optimal ternary g-C₃N₄-NiCoP₂-PC heterostructure exhibited enhanced photocatalytic HER performance and considerable H₂ evolution performance of 5.8 μmol/h/g under UV-visible light with stoichiometric H₂O₂ production even in pure water. This work took full advantage of the MOF derivative for improving the photocatalytic reaction activity and provided a method that can hopefully help in designing a novel high-performance catalyst for solar conversion.