Efficient photocatalytic H2-evolution coupled with valuable furfural-production on exquisite 2D/2D LaVO4/g-C3N4 heterostructure

Effectively utilize photogenerated holes (h + ) of catalysts while blocking rapid recombination of photoinduced carriers are the two critical challenges for solar-to-hydrogen (STH) conversion. Here, an exquisite 2D/2D LaVO 4 /g-C 3 N 4 (LaVO 4 /CN) heterostructure is delicately designed and fabricated for efficient photocatalytic H 2 -evolution while producing high value-added furfural simultaneously. The abundant biomass furfuryl alcohol (FFA) is employed to substitute the traditional h + sacrificial agents such as triethanolamine (TEOA) for the oxidation half reaction, which is very meaningful to balance the H 2 -evolution half reaction. The LaVO 4 /CN heterojunction enables 3-time increased H 2 -evolution and a high furfural-production rate (0.95 mmol g −1 h −1 ) than that of pristine graphite carbon nitride (g-C 3 N 4 , labeled as CN), and with a 22.16% H 2 -evolution apparent quantum efficiency (AQE) irradiated at 400 nm. This work provides an exquisite catalyst and a new strategy for efficient photocatalytic H 2 -evolution coupled with production of high valuable chemicals.