Novel RuSe2/Ti3C2 nanosheets incorporating into ZnIn2S4 nanoflowers with S-scheme charge transfer for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

Seemal Mansoor; Zixu Hu; Yuxin Zhang; Muhammad Tayyab; Zeeshan Akmal; Mazhar Khan; Hiromi Yamashita; Liang Zhou; Juying Lei; Jinlong Zhang

doi:10.1016/j.jcis.2025.138217

Novel RuSe₂/Ti₃C₂ nanosheets incorporating into ZnIn₂S₄ nanoflowers with S-scheme charge transfer for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

J Colloid Interface Sci. 2025 Jun 20;699(Pt 2):138217. doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2025.138217. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory for Advanced Materials, Shanghai Engineering Research Center for Multi-media Environmental Catalysis and Resource Utilization, Joint International Research Laboratory of Precision Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Feringa Nobel Prize Scientist Joint Research Center, School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science & Technology, Shanghai 200237, P. R. China.
² National Engineering Research Center of Industrial Wastewater Detoxication and Resource Recovery, State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Environmental Risk Assessment and Control on Chemical Process, East China University of Science and Technology, 130 Meilong Road, Shanghai 200237, PR China.
³ Key Laboratory for Advanced Materials, Shanghai Engineering Research Center for Multi-media Environmental Catalysis and Resource Utilization, Joint International Research Laboratory of Precision Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Feringa Nobel Prize Scientist Joint Research Center, School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science & Technology, Shanghai 200237, P. R. China; Institute of Materials Research, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, PR China.
⁴ Division of Materials and Manufacturing science, Graduate school of Engineering. Osaka University, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan.
⁵ National Engineering Research Center of Industrial Wastewater Detoxication and Resource Recovery, State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Environmental Risk Assessment and Control on Chemical Process, East China University of Science and Technology, 130 Meilong Road, Shanghai 200237, PR China; Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Shanghai, 200092, PR China. Electronic address: zhouliang@ecust.edu.cn.
⁶ National Engineering Research Center of Industrial Wastewater Detoxication and Resource Recovery, State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Environmental Risk Assessment and Control on Chemical Process, East China University of Science and Technology, 130 Meilong Road, Shanghai 200237, PR China; Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Shanghai, 200092, PR China.
⁷ Key Laboratory for Advanced Materials, Shanghai Engineering Research Center for Multi-media Environmental Catalysis and Resource Utilization, Joint International Research Laboratory of Precision Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Feringa Nobel Prize Scientist Joint Research Center, School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science & Technology, Shanghai 200237, P. R. China. Electronic address: jlzhang@ecust.edu.cn.

PMID: 40582203
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2025.138217

Abstract

One promising solution to address the escalating global energy crisis is photocatalytic hydrogen (H₂) production through water splitting. In this study, we introduce a novel selenium-based Nobel metal RuSe₂ which is deposited onto Ti₃C₂ nanosheets incorporated ZIS-3D nanoflowers and followed by S-scheme pathway along with Schottky junction photocatalyst which is capable of driving visible-light-induced water splitting for H₂ production. The photocatalyst was synthesized by photo depositing a RuSe₂ cocatalyst onto Ti₃C₂ nanosheets, which were subsequently integrated into ZIS nanoflowers. The resulting RuSe_0.5/TZ composite exhibited exceptional photocatalytic performance under visible light, achieving an impressive H₂ evolution rate of up to 1892.30 μmol g^-1 h^-1. This remarkable activity is attributed to the efficient transfer and separation of photogenerated charge carriers across the interfacial heterostructures, effectively suppressing their recombination. Furthermore, the S-scheme charge transfer mechanism was confirmed through Tauc-plot calculations and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) analysis, which revealed the appropriate band alignment necessary for the efficient migration of photoexcited charge carriers during H₂ production. This work demonstrates that the RuSe₂ cocatalyst integrated with the Ti₃C₂/ZIS photocatalytic system holds significant potential for addressing environmental challenges and advancing sustainable energy solutions.

Keywords: Clean energy; Hydrogen production; Photo deposition; S-scheme heterojunction; Water splitting.