Anchoring Pt nanoparticles and Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene nanosheets on CdS nanospheres as efficient synergistic photocatalysts for hydrogen evolution

The development of a new-fashioned functional nanomaterial with an outstanding photocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity under visible-light irradiation is a sustainable and promising strategy to cope with the increasingly serious global energy crisis. Herein, an advanced ternary photocatalytic HER catalyst, in which the Pt nanoparticles and Ti 3 C 2 T x nanosheets are synchronously anchored on the surface of CdS nanospheres (Ti 3 C 2 T x /Pt@CdS), is elaborately constructed via acid etching, self-reduction, and solvothermal treatment. Therein, the synergistic promoting effect between Ti 3 C 2 T x and Pt on the charge transfer of CdS effectively hinders the backtransfer of electrons to recombine with holes, resulting in a high-effective utilization of photo-excited charges. The obtained Ti 3 C 2 T x /Pt@CdS possesses a superior photocatalytic HER activity compared to that of single active component catalyst. This work demonstrates the great potential of MXene materials in constructing high performance photocatalysts.