Effect of in-situ assembling zeolite imidazolate frameworks on the photoelectric properties of paper-based ZnO nanorod array

The design and preparation of photoelectrode materials with excellent performance are crucial for the development and application of photoelectrochemical (PEC) technique. Paper-based photosensitive materials have been widely studied due to their large surface area, environmental friendliness and low cost. Among them, as one photoelectric material with high photoelectric activity, high electron mobility and non-toxic, paper-based ZnO nanorods have broad application prospects. However, the high recombination rate of charge carriers and photocorrosion seriously restrict the improvement of its PEC performance. Aiming to address these issues, zeolitic imidazolate frameworks-8 (ZIF-8) is in-situ assembled on paper-based ZnO through hydrothermal method to construct paper-based one-dimensional ZnO/ZIF-8 nanorod array. The results show that the ZIF-8 are uniformly and densely grown on the surface of ZnO nanorods, their seamless interface contact can facilitate the charge transport. Meantime, the ZnO surface enriched with abundant oxygen vacancy is etched and converted into ZIF-8, which can restrain the photocorrosion. Besides, due to the matched energy band structure, the formed ZnO/ZIF-8 heterojunction can realize the bidirectional transfer of photogenerated electrons and holes, thereby efficiently promoting the charge separation. Compared with pure ZnO, paper-based ZnO/ZIF-8 composites exhibit higher photocurrent density and enhanced photostability.