Boosted photocatalytic hydrogen production over two-dimensional/two-dimensional TaN/ReS van der Waals heterojunctions.

Currently, two-dimensional/two-dimensional (2D/2D) van der Waals heterojunctions, as novel and excellent candidates for photocatalysts, have attracted significant attention because of their fundamentally improved interfacial charge separation/transfer and massive reactive centers. Herein, novel 2D/2D TaN-nanosheet/ReS-nanosheet van der Waals heterojunction photocatalysts are rationally designed through a method combining template-assisted and solution-adsorption processes. The resultant heterojunctions exhibit enhanced interfacial charge transfer, boosted light absorption and significantly increased reaction sites for hydrogen evolution. Correspondingly, they deliver a high photocatalytic hydrogen production activity of 615 μmol g h, which is ∼3 and ∼12 times greater than that of bare TaN nanosheets and ReS nanosheets, respectively, and superior to those in the most recent reports about photocatalytic water splitting on TaN material, implying their potential applications as advanced catalysts for hydrogen evolution.