Boosting Visible‐Light‐Driven Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution with an Integrated Nickel Phosphide–Carbon Nitride System

Abstract

Abstract Solar light harvesting by photocatalytic H 2 evolution from water could solve the problem of greenhouse gas emission from fossil fuels with alternative clean energy. However, the development of more efficient and robust catalytic systems remains a great challenge for the technological use on a large scale. Here we report the synthesis of a sol–gel prepared mesoporous graphitic carbon nitride (sg‐CN) combined with nickel phosphide (Ni 2 P) which acts as a superior co‐catalyst for efficient photocatalytic H 2 evolution by visible light. This integrated system shows a much higher catalytic activity than the physical mixture of Ni 2 P and sg‐CN or metallic nickel on sg‐CN under similar conditions. Time‐resolved photoluminescence and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopic studies revealed that the enhanced carrier transfer at the Ni 2 P–sg‐CN heterojunction is the prime source for improved activity.