Interfacial engineering of graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4)-based metal sulfide heterojunction photocatalysts for energy conversion: A review

As one of the most appealing and attractive technologies, photocatalysis is widely used as a promising method to circumvent the environmental and energy problems. Due to its chemical stability and unique physicochemical, graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) has become research hotspots in the community. However, g-C₃N₄ photocatalyst still suffers from many problems, resulting in unsatisfactory photocatalytic activity such as low specific surface area, high charge recombination and insufficient visible light utilization. Since 2009, g-C₃N₄-based heterostructures have attracted the attention of scientists worldwide for their greatly enhanced photocatalytic performance. Overall, this review summarizes the recent advances of g-C₃N₄-based nanocomposites modified with transition metal sulfide (TMS), including (1) preparation of pristine g-C₃N₄, (2) modification strategies of g-C₃N₄, (3) design principles of TMS-modified g-C₃N₄ heterostructured photocatalysts, and (4) applications in energy conversion. What is more, the characteristics and transfer mechanisms of each classification of the metal sulfide heterojunction system will be critically reviewed, spanning from the following categories: (1) Type I heterojunction, (2) Type II heterojunction, (3) p-n heterojunction, (4) Schottky junction and (5) Z-scheme heterojunction. Apart from that, the application of g-C₃N₄-based heterostructured photocatalysts in H₂ evolution, CO₂ reduction, N₂ fixation and pollutant degradation will also be systematically presented. Last but not least, this review will conclude with invigorating perspectives, limitations and prospects for further advancing g-C₃N₄-based heterostructured photocatalysts toward practical benefits for a sustainable future.     

g-C3N4基复合分离膜的制备及光催化性能

利用g-C₃N₄纳米片表面的氨基与膜基底材料氯甲基化聚醚砜（CMPES）的苄氯基团发生化学交联反应,再通过相转化法制备出g-C₃N₄/CMPES复合膜。系统研究了g-C₃N₄纳米片的添加对复合膜的结构、形貌及过滤、光催化、抗污染性能的影响,并探讨其光催化降解牛血清白蛋白溶液（BSA）的机理。研究结果表明：g-C₃N₄纳米片与膜基底材料通过化学键相连接,有效提高了复合膜的光催化性能和稳定性。由于g-C₃N₄纳米片的亲水性和光催化作用,使复合膜表现出优异的过滤性能和抗污染性能。     

Two-dimensional polymeric carbon nitride: structural engineering for optimizing photocatalysis

As a two-dimensional (2D) material, polymeric carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) nanosheet holds great potentials in environmental purification and solar energy conversion. In this review, we summarized latest progress in the optimization of photocatalytic performance in 2D g-C₃N₄. Some of the latest structural engineering methods were summed up, where the relevant influences on the behaviors of photoinduced species were emphasized. Furthermore, the construction strategies for band structure modulation and charge separation promotion were then discussed in detail. A brief discussion on the opportunity and challenge of 2D g-C₃N₄-based photocatalysis are presented as the conclusion of this review.     

Tuning of graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) for photocatalysis: A critical review

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) is a remarkable semiconductor catalyst that has attracted widespread attention as a visible light photo-responsive, metal-free, low-cost photocatalytic material. Pristine g-C₃N₄ suffers fast recombination of photogenerated electron-hole pairs, low surface area, and insufficient visible light absorption, resulting in low photocatalytic efficiency. This review presents the recent progress, perspectives, and persistent challenges in the development of g-C₃N₄-based photocatalytic materials. Several approaches employed to improve the visible light absorption of the materials including metal and non-metal doping, co-doping, and heterojunction engineering have been extensively discussed. These approaches, in general, were found to decrease the material’s bandgap, increase the surface area, reduce charge carrier recombination, and promote visible light absorption, thereby enhancing the overall photocatalytic performance. The material has been widely used for different applications such as photocatalytic hydrogen production, water splitting, CO₂ conversion, and water purification. The work has also identified various limitations and weaknesses associated with the material that hinders its maximum utilization under visible illumination and presented state-of-the-art solutions that have been reported recently. The summary presented in this review would add an invaluable contribution to photocatalysis research and facilitate the development of efficient visible light-responsive semiconducting materials.     

活性氧自由基生成及传输对g-C_3N_4上NO光催化去除的影响:原位红外光谱与计算模拟结合法（英文）

石墨相氮化碳(g-C_3N_4)具有独特的二维层状结构和合适的能带结构,因而在可见光催化领域广受关注.尤其是在可见光去除环境污染物领域,得到了较为充分的研究与应用.然而g-C_3N_4去除环境污机理的反应机理尚不明确.因此,本文采用理论计算与实验高度结合的研究方法,以光催化NO去除为例,深入阐述了光照下g-C_3N_4表面活性氧物种(ROS)的生成及转化过程,及其介导下的NO光催化氧化机理.X射线衍射结果表明,g-C_3N_4是三嗪环层内聚合后层层堆叠而成,并由红外光谱确定了其表面的官能团类型.该结构经扫描电镜和透射电镜得到了进一步的验证.采用光致激发谱和紫外可见漫反射光谱等实验表征与密度泛函理论计算结合的光电性质分析,我们发现,g-C_3N_4在可见光下具有一定的响应,这为其在光催化去除NO中奠定了基础.同时,其价带位置过高,无法自行产生氧化性较强的羟基自由基(.OH).电子自旋共振技术结果表明g-C_3N_4在光照下能捕获到·O_2~-和·OH两种活性自由基.采用反应路径计算发现,·OH是由·O_2~-在导带上逐步得到电子被还原而生成,其中的速率控制步骤是H_2O_2的解离.因此,促进O_2分子的吸附和活化和克服H_2O_2解离的反应活化能是产生·OH和提升g-C_3N_4光催化氧化活性的关键.采用原位红外光谱技术对g-C_3N_4上NO的氧化去除过程进行了表征,发现其主要中间产物为NO_2,主要终产物为NO_2~-和NO_3~-,采用反应路径计算对该反应过程进行了理论模拟,发现在·O_2~-介导下,最高反应活化能为0.66 eV,而在·OH介导下,该活化能降低至0.46 eV,表明·OH的氧化性要明显强于·O_2~-.总之,本文采用一种可行的、高度结合的实验与计算手段研究了g-C_3N_4上ROS的生成及转化过程及其对NO去除的反应历程,在原子尺度揭示了该反应的机理,加深了对ROS在光催化环境污染物降解过程中作用的理解.     

Photocatalytic Reduction of Cr (VI) over g-C3N4 Photocatalysts Synthesized by Different Precursors

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) photocatalysts were synthesized via a one-step pyrolysis process using melamine, dicyandiamide, thiourea, and urea as precursors. The obtained g-C₃N₄ materials exhibited a significantly different performance for the photocatalytic reduction of Cr(VI) under white light irradiation, which is attributed to the altered structure and occupancies surface groups. The urea-derived g-C₃N₄ with nanosheet morphology, large specific surface area, and high occupancies of surface amine groups exhibited superior photocatalytic activity. The nanosheet morphology and large surface area facilitated the separation and transmission of charge, while the high occupancies of surface amine groups promoted the formation of hydrogen adsorption atomic centers which were beneficial to Cr(VI) reduction. Moreover, the possible reduction pathway of Cr(VI) to Cr(III) over the urea-derived g-C₃N₄ was proposed and the reduction process was mainly initiated by a direct reduction of photogenerated electrons.     

A simple and rapid route for synthesizing the nanosized g-C3N4 materials with narrow bandgap and their photocatalytic activity

The graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) materials with many intriguing properties have attracted much attention in photocatalysis. The photocatalytic activity of g-C₃N₄ is hindered by serious aggregation and limited exposed active sites. Herein is shown that nanosized g-C₃N₄ can be simply obtained by a superfast high-pressure homogenization approach. The high-pressure homogenization treatment can provide strong force to cut and/or to exfoliate the bulk g-C₃N₄ into nanosized g-C₃N₄ with good dispersion. Moreover, choosing different solvents during treatment can cause a different surface structure of as-prepared nanosized g-C₃N₄. In addition, the narrow bandgap properties, the high photogenerated charge carrier separation, and the transport abilities are achieved in as-prepared nanosized g-C₃N₄ because of the retaining conjugated C₃N₄ system. Specifically, the photocatalytic activities of as-prepared nanosized g-C₃N₄ have been significantly enhanced in terms of degradation of organic dye Rhodamine B (RhB) under visible light irradiation (10 times higher than that of bulk g-C₃N₄). These findings can provide a promising and simple approach to the exfoliation, nanonization, and surface functionalization of 2D layered materials.     

Construction of direct Z-scheme g-C3N4/TiO2 nanorod composites for promoting photocatalytic activity

Direct Z-scheme g-C₃N₄/TiO₂ nanorod composites were prepared for enhancing photocatalytic activity for pollutant removal. The characterization revealed that the g-C₃N₄/TiO₂ nanorod composite formed a close interface contact between g-C₃N₄ and TiO₂ nanorods, which was of benefit for the charge transfer and resulted in its high photocatalytic activity. The g-C₃N₄/TiO₂ nanorod composites exhibited higher photocatalytic activity for degradation of Rhodamine B (RHB) than bare g-C₃N₄ and TiO₂ nanorods. The high photocatalytic activity of g-C₃N₄/TiO₂ nanorod composites is attributed to the formation of the direct Z-scheme system, in which the electrons from the conduction band (CB) of TiO₂ combine with the holes from the valence band (VB) of C₃N₄ while the electrons from the CB of C₃N₄ and holes from the VB of TiO₂ with stronger redox ability are used to reduce and oxidize pollutants. Based on the radical-trapping experiments, the main reactive species for RHB degradation are O₂⁻ and · OH, which are produced by photoinduced electrons and holes with high redox ability. This work provides insights into the photocatalytic mechanism of composite materials for the photocatalytic removal of organic pollutants.     

What Role Does the Incident Light Intensity Play in Photocatalytic Conversion of CO2: Attenuation or Intensification?

Artificial photoreduction of CO₂ is vital for the sustainable development of human beings via solar energy storage in stable chemicals. This process involves intricate light-matter interactions, but the role of incident light intensity in photocatalysis remains obscure. Herein, the influence of excitation intensity on charge kinetics and photocatalytic activity is investigated. Model photocatalysts include the pure graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) and g-C₃N₄ loaded with noble/non-noble-metal cocatalysts (Ag, TiN, and CuO). It is found that the increase of light intensity does not always improve the electron utilization. Overly high excitation intensities cause charge carrier congestion and changes the recombination mechanism, which is called the light congestion effect. The electron transport channels can be established to mitigate the light-induced effect via the addition of cocatalyst, leading to a nonlinear growth in the reaction rate with increasing light intensity. From experiments and simulations, it is found that the light intensity and active site density should be collectively optimized for increasing the energy conversion efficiency. This work elucidates the effect of light intensity on photocatalytic CO₂ reduction and emphasizes the synergistic relationship of matching the light intensity and the photocatalyst category. The study provides guidance for the design of efficient photocatalysts and the operation of photocatalytic systems.     

Exploring recent advances in silver halides and graphitic carbon nitride-based photocatalyst for energy and environmental applications

Engineering visible light active photocatalytic systems for renewable energy production and environmental remediation has always been a promising technology to counter overall energy demands and pollution challenges. As a fascinating conjugated polymer graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) has been developed as a hotspot in the research field as a metal-free semiconducting material with the appealing band gap of 2.7 eV. Recently, g-C₃N₄ has gained tremendous interest in photocatalytic wastewater abatement as well as for hydrogen (H₂) generation, carbon dioxide (CO₂) reduction, and pollutant degradation, under exposure to visible light. Plasmonic silver halides (AgX) such as AgCl, AgBr, and AgI as plasmonic photocatalyst have received immense research interest owing to their escalating photocatalytic efficacy and strong surface plasmon resonance effect (SPR). AgX is the photosensitive, broad bandgap semiconducting materials with effectual antimicrobial properties. This review summarizes the heterostructure of carbonaceous g-C₃N₄ with plasmonic AgX, to reduce the recombination of photo-generated charge carriers, thus enhancing the natural light absorption. g-C₃N₄ grafted AgX nanoarchitectures can be utilized for several potential applications, for instance, overall water splitting (OWS), CO₂ conversion to hydrocarbon fuels, pollutant exclusion, and antibacterial disinfection. This review focuses on the evolution of g-C₃N₄ as well as AgX, facile, and synthetic routes for fabrication of g-C₃N₄ tailored AgX, construction of nano-junctions (AgX/g-C₃N₄) with various photocatalytic applications. Finally, we provided a viewpoint of current hassles and some perceptions of novel trends in this exciting as well as developing research arena.     

Efficient strategies for boosting the performance of 2D graphitic carbon nitride nanomaterials during photoreduction of carbon dioxide to energy-rich chemicals

Nowadays, the alarming growing interest in providing a solution to increasing concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) and the associated pollution has attracted global attention. The consequential effects of CO₂ are detrimental to the environment owing to the continuous depletion of carbon-emitting fossil fuels. Photocatalytic CO₂ reduction (CO₂R) to valuable chemicals and fuels is one the promising alternative option to mitigate the global menace instigated by CO₂ emissions. If the strategies for enhancing the CO₂R are unavailable, inefficient, or inappropriate, then efficiency conversion CO₂ to valuable products can become problematic. In that case, the emission of CO₂ results in synchronizing upsurge in the global-mean air surface temperature on the earth and sea levels from 1980 to 2100. This study presents different strategies for boosting the photocatalytic performance of 2D graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) for CO₂R reaction. The first part consists of the fundamental principles of photocatalysis. The second part presents some answers to the question: what governs the mechanism of photocatalytic CO₂R? The existing literature lack comprehensive information about the strategical influence of available reactor designs on the photoactivity of 2D g-C₃N₄ for CO₂ conversion to energy-rich chemicals and ways to improve them as discussed in this study. This was then followed by strategies about the synthetic methods for enhancing photocatalytic CO₂R over 2D g-C₃N₄ materials before the discussion of the strategies for enhancing the CO₂ photoreduction on the 2D g-C₃N₄ nanomaterials. Some groups of g-C₃N₄ nanomaterials for photoreduction of CO₂R were also discussed. Unlike the previous reviews in the field, the present study presents some innovation to bridge the knowledge gaps of the previous reviews and corresponding insight thereof. For future breakthroughs, this study also explains some problems with the interpretation in the field. We also highlight insights into innovation on exclusion and inclusion criteria about the performance metrics and present some queries, concerns, and problems with the previous studies. The concluding part consists of research outlooks, including commonly overlooked challenges and future perspectives for ensuring highly efficient strategies, applications of 2D g-C₃N₄ photocatalysts, and CO₂ conversion to meet industrial scale expectations. The present study hypothesized that considering the current technological age, the experiment should go beyond presenting only illustration and analysis about the band energy, but the detailed explanation/information about the pathways of the various products formed using molecular dynamics system and artificial intelligence aspects should be combined in the future studies.     

One-step fabrication and high photocatalytic activity of porous graphitic carbon nitride/graphene oxide hybrid by direct polymerization of cyanamide without templates

Graphene oxide modified porous g-C₃N₄ (porous g-C₃N₄/GO) had been synthesized by means of one-step calcination of cyanamide for efficient photocatalysis under visible light irradiation (λ > 400 nm). We expect that the photocatalytic activity of this hybrid photocatalyst could be enhanced by the efficient visible light absorption due to the porous structure and efficient photo generated charge separation at the heterojunction formed between porous g-C₃N₄ and GO. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images demonstrated that the as prepared photocatalyst is composed of GO and porous g-C₃N₄. The UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectrum shows that optical absorption of porous g-C₃N₄/GO is more intensive than for pristine g-C₃N₄. The enhanced generation of photocurrent under visible light irradiation (λ > 400 nm) is observed for the porous g-C₃N₄/GO. The results of photocatalytic experiments reveal that the pseudofirst-order kinetic constant of photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue (MB) using the porous g-C₃N₄/GO is 6 times higher than that of pristine g-C₃N₄.     

静电纺丝制备g-C3N4/C纳米纤维及其可见光降解性能

采用g-C_3N_4纳米片与聚丙烯腈进行静电复合纺丝,再经预氧化和碳化制得g-C_3N_4/C纳米纤维。利用傅立叶变换红外光谱仪(FTIR)、X射线衍射仪(XRD)、拉曼光谱(Raman)和扫描电子显微镜(SEM)对样品结构和形貌进行表征,通过紫外-可见漫反射光谱(UV-Vis DRS)分析可见光响应性。研究表明,复合纳米纤维对罗丹明B表现出较好的可见光降解活性,源于无定形相/石墨相混合结构的碳基体能够降低g-C_3N_4的光生电子-空穴对复合的几率。复合纳米纤维膜在光催化降解搅拌条件下始终能保持完整,经过多次回收和光催化实验,对罗丹明B的光降解率依然较高,表现出较优异的循环利用稳定性。     

静电纺丝制备g-C3N4/C纳米纤维及其可见光降解性能

采用g-C₃N₄纳米片与聚丙烯腈进行静电复合纺丝,再经预氧化和碳化制得g-C₃N₄/C纳米纤维。利用傅立叶变换红外光谱仪（FTIR）、X射线衍射仪（XRD）、拉曼光谱（Raman）和扫描电子显微镜（SEM）对样品结构和形貌进行表征,通过紫外-可见漫反射光谱（UV-Vis DRS）分析可见光响应性。研究表明,复合纳米纤维对罗丹明B表现出较好的可见光降解活性,源于无定形相/石墨相混合结构的碳基体能够降低g-C₃N₄的光生电子-空穴对复合的几率。复合纳米纤维膜在光催化降解搅拌条件下始终能保持完整,经过多次回收和光催化实验,对罗丹明B的光降解率依然较高,表现出较优异的循环利用稳定性。     

Flower-like shaped Bi12TiO20/g-C3N4 heterojunction for effective elimination of organic pollutants: Preparation,characterization, and mechanism study

Flower-like shaped Bi₁₂TiO₂₀ (Bismuth Titanate)/g-C₃N₄ (graphite-like carbon nitride) heterojunction was prepared through hydrothermal and sonification methods for the degradation of organic pollutants by visible-light irradiation. The preparation process, chemical structures, and the mechanism of photocatalytic enhancement of the heterostructures were studied systematically. Under visible-light irradiation, the novel flower-like shaped Bi₁₂TiO₂₀/g-C₃N₄ heterojunction demonstrates prominent activities for the degradation of rhodamine B and p-nitrophenol, with the introduction of flower-like shaped Bi₁₂TiO₂₀ into g-C₃N₄ composites greatly increasing the activity of pure g-C₃N₄. This activity enhancement for the heterojunction could be mainly attributed to its low recombination speed of electron–hole pairs, high adsorption ability of organic pollutants, and better optical absorption ability. Moreover, in the visible-light system of Bi₁₂TiO₂₀/g-C₃N₄, ^•OH also contributed to the degradation of pollutants, which may explain the enhanced photocatalytic activity after the introduction of Bi₁₂TiO_20, as ^•OH is inactive in pure g-C₃N₄. Furthermore, 10 wt.% Bi₁₂TiO₂₀/g-C₃N₄ showed not only high activity but also good stability for degradation of aqueous organic pollutants, implying potential applications prospect.     

Gold/monolayer graphitic carbon nitride plasmonic photocatalyst for ultrafast electron transfer in solar-to-hydrogen energy conversion

Gold (Au) plasmonic nanoparticles were grown evenly on monolayer graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) nanosheets via a facile oil-bath method. The photocatalytic activity of the Au/monolayer g-C₃N₄ composites under visible light was evaluated by photocatalytic hydrogen evolution and environmental treatment. All of the Au/monolayer g-C₃N₄ composites showed better photocatalytic performance than that of monolayer g-C₃N₄ and the 1% Au/monolayer g-C₃N₄ composite displayed the highest photocatalytic hydrogen evolution rate of the samples. The remarkable photocatalytic activity was attributed largely to the successful introduction of Au plasmonic nanoparticles, which led to the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect. The SPR effect enhanced the efficiency of light harvesting and induced an efficient hot electron transfer process. The hot electrons were injected from the Au plasmonic nanoparticles into the conduction band of monolayer g-C₃N₄. Thus, the Au/monolayer g-C₃N₄ composites possessed higher migration and separation efficiencies and lower recombination probability of photogenerated electron-hole pairs than those of monolayer g-C₃N₄. A photocatalytic mechanism for the composites was also proposed.     

A fantastic graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) material: Electronic structure,photocatalytic and photoelectronic properties

As an analog of graphite, graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) has been the hotspot in the materials science for its unique electronic structure. With medium band gap as well as thermal and chemical stability in ambient environment, it becomes one of the most promising photocatalytic materials. Intensive investigation has been focus on its photocatalytic performance for various reactions to date. What is more, controllable modulation of its electronic structure via doping or chemical functionalization is available. In addition, considerable attention has been paid on its photoelectronic application, such as light emitting device, photocathode, optical sensor, etc. Based on the electronic properties and pathway to modulate its electronic structure, in this review, we highlight the applications of g-C₃N₄ ranging from photocatalytic to photoelectronic materials.     

g-C3N4-BiOBr复合材料制备及可见光催化性能

利用原位沉积法将BiOBr纳米片生长到g-C₃N₄表面,制得g-C₃N₄-BiOBr p-n型异质结复合光催化剂。采用X射线衍射(XRD)、红外光谱(FTIR)、场发射扫描电子显微镜(FE-SEM)、透射电子显微镜(TEM)、紫外可见漫反射(UV-Vis-DRS)和荧光光谱(PL)等测试对光催化剂结构和性能进行表征。通过可见光辐照降解甲基橙水溶液检测评估复合光催化剂光催化活性。研究结果表明:复合光催化剂由BiOBr和g-C₃N₄两相组成,BiOBr纳米片在片状g-C₃N₄表面快速形核生长形成面-面复合结构。相比于纯相g-C₃N₄和BiOBr,g-C₃N₄-BiOBr复合材料具有更强可见光吸收能力,吸收带边红移。在可见光辐照100 min后,性能最佳的2:8 g-C₃N₄-BiOBr复合光催化剂光催化活性分别是纯相g-C₃N₄和BiOBr的1.8和1.2倍,经过4次循环实验后,其降解率仍达84%,说明复合结构光催化剂催化性能和稳定性增强。复合光催化剂的荧光强度显著降低,说明光生载流子复合得到了有效抑制。复合光催化剂催化性能的提高归因于p-n型异质结促进电荷有效分离、抑制电子-空穴复合和吸收光波长范围的扩展,相比单一成分材料具有更好的催化活性和稳定性。自由基捕获实验证明,可见光降解甲基橙光催化过程中的主要活性成分为空穴,并据此提出了可能的光催化机理。     

Ag nanoparticles loaded on porous graphitic carbon nitride with enhanced photocatalytic activity for degradation of phenol

Highly efficient photocatalyst of visible-light-driven Ag nanoparticles loaded on porous graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) was prepared by the reduction of Ag ions on porous g-C₃N₄. The obtained Ag/porous g-C₃N₄ composite products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), UV-vis diffuse reflection spectra (DRS), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA). The results demonstrated that a homogeneous distribution of Ag NPs of 10 nm was attached onto the surface of the porous g-C₃N₄. The prepared Ag/porous g-C₃N₄ samples were applied for catalyzing the degradation of phenol in water under visible light irradiation. Porous g-C₃N₄ demonstrated an excellent support for the formation and dispersion of small uniform Ag NPs. When the weight percentage of Ag reaches 5%, the nanohybrid exhibits superior photocatalytic activities compared to bulk g-C₃N₄, porous g-C₃N₄, and 2% Ag/porous g-C₃N₄ hybrids. The enhanced photocatalytic performance is due to the synergic effect between Ag and porous g-C₃N₄, which suppressed the recombination of photogenerated electron-hole pairs.     

Nanocavity-assisted single-crystalline Ti3+ self-doped blue TiO2(B) as efficient cocatalyst for high selective CO2 photoreduction of g-C3N4

Two-dimensional (2D) graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) has invoked significant interest for photocatalytic applications for its excellent features such as high surface area, visible light absorption, and easy transportation of photogenerated charge carriers, but the most reported g-C₃N₄ show relatively low photoactivity due to inferior conductivity and rapid recombination of carriers. These can be overcome by inducing porosity in g-C₃N₄, followed by exfoliation and combining with other materials. Herein, we synthesize nanocavity-assisted oxygen-deficient Ti³⁺ self-doped blue TiO₂(B) nanorods (BT) and integrate them on exfoliated porous g-C₃N₄ (PCN). The synthesized materials are tested for photocatalytic conversion of CO₂ into solar fuels (H₂, CO, and CH₄). The fabricated BT/PCN heterostructures exhibit higher photocatalytic CO₂ conversion activity and 92% CO-evolving selectivity than BT and PCN. The enhancement in activity of BT/PCN can be attributed to the efficient separation and transportation of charge carriers, facilitated by the unique properties of BT, PCN, and their synergistic interactions. We believe that these results can contribute to the improvement of cost-effectiveness, feasibility, and overall performance for real photocatalytic systems.