Surface Sulfurization of Cubic Cu2O to Form Cu2S Nanostructure-Decorated Catalysts for Light-enhanced Electrocatalytic H2 Evolution and Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction

Developing highly efficient bifunctional catalysts for electrocatalysis and photocatalysis suffers from sluggish charge transfer and poor photo-to-electric conversion rate. Herein, micro-sized Cu2O cubes were initially prepared for subsequent transformation into Cu2O@Cu2S core-shell structures by a slight surface sulfurization. The formation of nanostructured Cu2S thin layer at Cu2O surface can endow an immediate charge separation and migration under light irradiation, leading to high surface photovoltages (SPV, 18-30 mV). As a result, the as-prepared Cu2O@Cu2S catalysts exhibited reduced overpotentials (η, only 86 mV is required for the optimized sample to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm-2) for H2 evolution with good cycling stability in electrocatalytic water splitting. Meanwhile, a high methane (CH4) production rate of 30.3 μmol h-1 g-1 can be delivered from the optimized Cu2O@Cu2S sample when used for photocatalytic CO2 reduction. This work has provided a strategy to prepare bifunctional catalysts with improved photoelectric properties for photo/electrocatalytic applications.