Synergistic effect of <i>in situ</i> growth of highly porous ZIF-8 on black phosphorus nanosheets for enhanced photocatalytic and electrochemical performance

Abstract The present study examines the synthesis of black phosphorus nanosheets (BPNs) through the liquid-phase exfoliation of bulk black phosphorus, subsequently leading to the in situ growth of zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIF-8) on PVP-stabilized BPNs. The synthesized nanocomposites were analyzed using various analytical techniques, confirming that ZIF-8 is effectively attached to the surface of BPNs, resulting in improved dispersion, a large surface area and an appropriate pore size distribution. Incorporating ZIF-8 into BPNs significantly improves the photocatalytic performance in the degradation of methylene blue (MB) and rhodamine 6G (R6G) dyes. The degradation efficiency is 88 % for both MB and R6G within 90 min of UV light irradiation, attributed to the enhanced capture of electrons and the reduction of photogenerated electron-hole pair recombination potential. Additionally, the electrochemical capacitance of the uniquely designed electrode materials is analyzed using electrochemical techniques. BPNs/ZIF-8 electrode exhibits a 40 % increase in capacity witha specific capacitance of 145 Fg −1 compared to BPNs, which show a specific capacitance of 98 Fg −1 at apotential scan rate of 10 mVs -1 . Moreover, the BPNs/ZIF-8 electrode material has excellent cyclic stability with acapacitive retention of 85 % after 9,500 cycles. The results indicate that this material holds considerable promise for applications in photocatalysis and supercapacitors, opening avenues for progress in these fields.