S-doped ZnO nanorods on stainless-steel wire mesh as immobilized hierarchical photocatalysts for photocatalytic H2 production

• S-doped ZnO nanorods on wire mesh as immobilized hierarchical photocatalysts.
• Growing S-doped ZnO nanorods on wire mesh improves surface hydrophilicity.
• Increased surface area, enhanced light trapping and liquid flow among wire-mesh.
• Photocatalyst with high activity by tuning surface texture and doping.
• 94.4% H2 evolution activity retained after three repeated tests.

S-doped ZnO nanorods were grown on stainless steel mesh as immobilized hierarchical photocatalysts for hydrogen production. Properties of the photocatalysts were investigated by field-emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD), photoinduced current, and photocatalytic hydrogen evolution test. Effects of polymer additive and doping on the surface texture, surface property, and H2 production performance of the photocatalysts were studied. Polyethyleneimine helps the growth of nanorods on the entire surface of wire mesh. Photocatalytic H2 production activity of the photocatalysts changes with dopant content and surface texture modification. Due to increased surface area of the hierarchical photocatalyst, enhanced light trapping and liquid flow among wire-mesh, the highest hydrogen evolution rate of 3640 μmol g−1 h−1 is obtained. The photocatalytic activity of photocatalyst remained at 87% of its original performance after five cycles.

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