Visible Light Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution Paired with Excellent Intramolecular Coupling of Dithiols into Sulfurous Heterocyclic Compounds over CdS/P25/Ni₂P

Photocatalytichydrogen evolution coupled with high value-addedchemical production using solar energy has attracted increasing attentiondue to the green and environmental advantages. Herein, the photocatalyticintramolecular coupling of dithiols into sulfurous heterocyclic compoundspaired with simultaneous hydrogen evolution was initiated throughan efficiently dual-functional photocatalytic system under visiblelight. Most approvingly, this system exhibits an excellent H-2 production rate of 9949.5 & mu;mol & BULL;g(cat) (-1)& BULL;h(-1) and the yield of sulfurous heterocycliccompounds reached nearly 100% under optimal conditions. Mechanismstudies reveal that this reaction operates through a radical pathway,and the origin of the released H-2 is the solvent H2O. A feasible mechanism for this dual-functional photocatalytic process was proposed, relying on the above experiments and analyses.It is anticipated that this research not only provides an approachfor generating hydrogen environmentally but also broadens the fieldsof photocatalytic synthesis, which has an inspirational contributionto the further development of photocatalysis technology.