摘要
The incorporation of nitrogen-doped carbon nanodots (N-doped CDs) with cadmium sulfide (CdS) and zinc sulfide (ZnS) significantly enhances the photocatalytic efficiency for hydrogen production from seawater, demonstrating marked improvements compared to the performance of the individual components. The microwave-assisted hydrothermal combines N-doped CDs with CdS, creating the N-doped CDs@CdS composite, which was further hybridized with ZnS to form N-doped CDs@CdS@ZnS. This composite exhibits increased surface area and efficient electron-hole separation, leading to higher light absorption and photocatalytic activity. Experimental data reveal that the N-doped CDs@CdS@ZnS composite achieves 11.5- and 21.1-fold greater hydrogen evolution rates than CdS and ZnS nanoparticles. The enhanced performance is attributed to the synergistic effects of combined materials, which improve charge carrier dynamics and active surface sites, optimizing the photocatalytic decomposition process under visible light. This nanocomposite design demonstrates a promising approach for enhancing photocatalytic hydrogen generation from seawater, leveraging structural and electronic properties for improved reaction efficiency.
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•Varying CdS precursor concentrations synthesized n-doped CDs@CdS composites.•Optimal hydrogen evolution of 162.3 μmol h−1g−1 was achieved at 100 °C for N-doped CDs@CdS.•N-doped CDs@CdS@ZnS reached 594.5 μmol h−1g−1, showing enhanced photocatalytic activity.•The composites exhibited stability and reusability over multiple photocatalytic cycles.•Superior efficiency in seawater highlights its practical use in hydrogen generation.