Facile synthesis of defected TiO_(2-x)(B) nanosheet/graphene oxide hybrids with high photocatalytic H_(2) activity

TiO_(2)(B) nanosheets/GO(graphene oxide) hybrids are considered to be outstanding performance photocatalysts for high efficiency of H_(2) evolution. However, they still suffer severe challenges during the synthetic processes, such as a large amount of the capping agents adhering on the surface and easy occurrence of aggregation. To figure out these obstacles, Ar plasma treatment as a modified method in this study not only enable the TiO_(2)(B) nanosheets distributed uniformly on the GO sheets but also engineer defects within TiO_(2)(B) nanosheets to significantly improve the photocatalytic activity for the water splitting. The hydrogen evolution rate of the TiO_(2)-x(B)/GO sheets is 1.4 times higher compared with that of original TiO_(2)(B)/GO sheets without Ar plasma treatment. The improved photocatalytic properties were owing to the synergetic effects of oxygen vacancies and the heterojunction between GO and TiO_(2)(B), which can promote the visible light utilization and accelerate separation and transportation of photogenerated electron-holes. This study can provide a facile pathway to prepare the two-dimensional hybrid photocatalysts with high photocatalytic H_(2) activity.