ZnGeP 2 : A near-infrared-activated photocatalyst for hydrogen production

In this work, we prepared ZnGeP 2 (ZGP) photocatalyst using single flat temperature zone (SFT) method in a vacuum quartz ampoule. The XRD, SEM, EDS, DRS and XPS were used to characterize the crystal structure, morphology, elemental content, optical absorption and band gap structure of ZGP. The results of photocatalytic hydrogen evolution and apparent quantum efficiency show that ZGP is a promising photocatalyst for hydrogen production both under visible and near-infrared light irradiation. In addition, it is also found that adding the common stabilizer H3PO2 and ultrasonic treatment can efficiently improve the photocatalytic activity and stability of ZGP.