One-Pot Fabrication of 2D/2D CdIn₂S₄/In₂S₃ Heterojunction for Boosting Photocatalytic Cr(VI) Reduction

Abstract

The development of efficient heterojunction photocatalysts with a facilitated charge carrier separation rate and improved light-harvesting capacity is still a challenging issue for effectively solving environmental pollution. Herein, a one-step refluxing process was employed to construct 2D/2D CdIn2S4/In2S3 (CISI) heterojunction photocatalysts with an intimate interface between these two components. The crystal structure, morphology, light-harvesting capacity, and Cr(VI) photoreduction performance were systematically investigated and discussed in detail. The tight interface formed between CdIn2S4 (CIS) and In2S3 (IS) could effectively facilitate the charge carrier separation and transfer. Thus, the resulting CISI composites exhibited a high efficiency for Cr(VI) photoreduction under visible light, with the optimal sample of 0.5 CISI. The charge transfer kinetics were deeply investigated by multiple techniques. Based on the characterization results, a possible mechanism for Cr(VI) photoreduction was proposed.

Keywords

• CdIn₂S₄
• In₂S₃
• photocatalysis
• heterojunction
• Cr(VI) photoreduction