In2O3 microspheres decorated with ZnIn2S4 nanosheets as core-shell hybrids for boosting visible-light photodegradation of organic dyes

Abstract

In this work, we firstly report the development of ZnIn₂S₄ nanosheets decorating In₂O₃ microspheres with core–shell structure by an in situ synthetic process, which is proved to be an effective method to construct promising semiconductor photocatalysts for photodegradation of methyl blue (MB) under visible-light conditions. Under visible-light illumination, the 2D/3D ZnIn₂S₄ nanosheet/In₂O₃ microsphere hybrids exhibit excellent enhancing photoactivity than that of pristine In₂O₃, The effect of ZnIn₂S₄ substitution on photoactivity was also investigated for comparative experiments and it was found that the optimized ZnIn₂S₄/In₂O₃-1:1 hybrid exhibits the highest photoactivity of 84.5%. The experimental results indicated that the reputably photocatalytic performance of ZnIn₂S₄/In₂O₃ can be attributed to the synergistic effect of efficient separation of photo-generated electron-hole pairs, extended visible-light response range, and the improved specific surface area. Furthermore, the roles of OH, and h⁺ during the photodegradation process were studied to deduce the possible degradation mechanism. This work provides an effective strategy to construct the In₂O₃-based photocatalytic systems for efficient photodegradation of organic pollutants, which would be significant for the design of more In₂O₃-based systems for promising photocatalytic applications.