Honeycomb-like g-C3N4/CeO2-x nanosheets obtained via one step hydrothermal-roasting for efficient and stable Cr(VI) photo-reduction

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄)-based materials are regarded as one of the most potential photocatalysts for utilizing solar energy. In this work, we reported a facile one step in-situ hydrothermal-roasting method for preparing honeycomb-like g-C₃N₄/CeO₂ nanosheets with abundant oxygen vacancies (g-C₃N₄/CeO_2-x). The hydrothermal-roasting and incomplete-sealed state can (i) generate an in-situ reducing atmosphere (CO, N₂, NH₃) to tune the concentration of oxygen vacancies in CeO₂; (ii) beneficial to prevent continuous growth of g-C₃N₄ and results in honeycomb-like g-C₃N₄/CeO_2-x hybrid nanosheets. What is more, the g-C₃N₄/CeO_2-x photocatalyst exhibited extended photoresponse range, increased specific surface area and obviously enhanced separation efficiency of photogenerated electron-hole pairs. As a proof-of-concept application, the optimized g-C₃N₄/CeO_2-x nanosheets could achieve 98% removal efficiency for Cr(VI) under visible light irradiation (λ ≥ 420 nm) within 2.5 h, which is significantly better than those of pure g-C₃N₄ and CeO₂. This work provides a new idea for more rationally designing and constructing g-C₃N₄-based catalysts for efficient extended photochemical application.     

Defects Promote Ultrafast Charge Separation in Graphitic Carbon Nitride for Enhanced Visible-Light-Driven CO2 Reduction Activity

Fundamental photocatalytic limitations of solar CO₂ reduction remain due to low efficiency, serious charge recombination, and short lifetime of catalysts. Herein, two-dimensional graphitic carbon nitride nanosheets with nitrogen vacancies (g-C₃N_x) located at both three-coordinate N atoms and uncondensed terminal NH_x species were prepared by one-step tartaric acid-assistant thermal polymerization of dicyandiamide. Transient absorption spectra revealed that the defects in g-C₃N₄ act as trapped states of charges to result in prolonged lifetimes of photoexcited charge carriers. Time-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy revealed that the faster decay of charges is due to the decreased interlayer stacking distance in g-C₃N_x in favor of hopping transition and mobility of charge carriers to the surface of the material. Owing to the synergic virtues of strong visible-light absorption, large surface area, and efficient charge separation, the g-C₃N_x nanosheets with negligible loss after 15 h of photocatalysis exhibited a CO evolution rate of 56.9 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹ under visible-light irradiation, which is roughly eight times higher than that of pristine g-C₃N₄. This work presents the role of defects in modulating light absorption and charge separation, which opens an avenue to robust solar-energy conversion performance.     

Probing the Electronic Structure and Photoactivation Process of Nitrogen‐Doped TiO2 Using DRS,PL, and EPR

The electronic structure and photoactivation process in N‐doped TiO₂ is investigated. Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), photoluminescence (PL), and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) are employed to monitor the change of optical absorption ability and the formation of N species and defects in the heat‐ and photoinduced N‐doped TiO₂ catalyst. Under thermal treatment below 573 K in vacuum, no nitrogen dopant is removed from the doped samples but oxygen vacancies and Ti³⁺ states are formed to enhance the optical absorption in the visible‐light region, especially at wavelengths above 500 nm with increasing temperature. In the photoactivation processes of N‐doped TiO₂, the DRS absorption and PL emission in the visible spectral region of 450–700 nm increase with prolonged irradiation time. The EPR results reveal that paramagnetic nitrogen species (N_s^.), oxygen vacancies with one electron (V_o^.), and Ti³⁺ ions are produced with light irradiation and the intensity of N_s^. species is dependent on the excitation light wavelength and power. The combined characterization results confirm that the energy level of doped N species is localized above the valence band of TiO₂ corresponding to the main absorption band at 410 nm of N‐doped TiO₂, but oxygen vacancies and Ti³⁺ states as defects contribute to the visible‐light absorption above 500 nm in the overall absorption of the doped samples. Thus, a detailed picture of the electronic structure of N‐doped TiO₂ is proposed and discussed. On the other hand, the transfer of charge carriers between nitrogen species and defects is reversible on the catalyst surface. The presence of oxygen‐vacancy‐related defects leads to quenching of paramagnetic N_s^. species but they stabilize the active nitrogen species N_s^?.     

氮缺陷对GaN/g-C3N4异质结电子结构和光学性能影响的第一性原理研究

基于密度泛函理论下的第一性原理平面波超软赝势方法,研究了单层GaN、g-C₃N₄、GaN/g-C₃N₄异质结及3种氮缺陷GaN/g-C₃N₄-V_XN （X=1、2、3）异质结的稳定性、电子结构、功函数及光学性能。计算结果表明,GaN/g-C₃N₄异质结体系晶格失配率极低（0.8%）,属于完全共格。与单层g-C₃N₄相比,GaN/g-C₃N₄和GaN/g-C₃N₄-V_XN （X=1、2、3）异质结的导带向低能方向偏移,价带上移,从而导致带隙减小,且态密度均显示出轨道杂化现象。GaN/g-C₃N₄和GaN/g-C₃N₄-V_XN （X=1、2、3）异质结在界面处均形成了电势差,在其内部形成了从g-C₃N₄层指向GaN层的内置电场。GaN/g-C₃N₄-V_1N异质结的界面电势差值最大且红移现象最为明显,表明GaN/g-C₃N₄-V_1N异质结相较其他2个N缺陷异质结光学性能最好。氮缺陷的引入在不同程度上提高了GaN/g-C₃N₄异质结在红外光区域的光吸收能力。     

氮缺陷对GaN/g-C3N4异质结电子结构和光学性能影响的第一性原理研究

基于密度泛函理论下的第一性原理平面波超软赝势方法,研究了单层GaN、g-C₃N₄、GaN/g-C₃N₄异质结及3种氮缺陷GaN/g-C₃N₄-V_XN(X=1、2、3)异质结的稳定性、电子结构、功函数及光学性能。计算结果表明,GaN/g-C₃N₄异质结体系晶格失配率极低(0.8%),属于完全共格。与单层g-C₃N₄相比,GaN/g-C₃N₄和GaN/g-C₃N₄-V_XN(X=1、2、3)异质结的导带向低能方向偏移,价带上移,从而导致带隙减小,且态密度均显示出轨道杂化现象。GaN/g-C₃N₄和GaN/g-C₃N₄-V_XN(X=1、2、3)异质结在界面处均形成了电势差,在其内部形成了从g-C₃N₄层指向GaN层的内置电场。GaN/g-C₃N₄-V_1N异质结的界面电势差值最大且红移现象最为明显,表明GaN/g-C₃N₄-V_1N异质结相较其他2个N缺陷异质结光学性能最好。氮缺陷的引入在不同程度上提高了GaN/g-C₃N₄异质结在红外光区域的光吸收能力。     

分级孔结构g-C3N4光催化剂的制备及性能

以单分散SiO2为模板,通过简单的一步煅烧法制备具有分级孔结构的g-C3N4。与体相g-C3N4相比,分级孔结构的g-C3N4不仅可见光吸收性能和比表面积得到提高,而且更有利于光生电子-空穴的分离。此外,具有分级孔结构的g-C3N4具有明显增强的可见光驱动的光催化产氢活性,当SiO2和二氰二胺质量比为1∶1时,制备所得g-C3N4(C3N4-2)产氢速率几乎是体相g-C3N4的18倍。     

Defect-assisted surface modification enhances the visible light photocatalytic performance of g-C3N4@C-TiO2 direct Z-scheme heterojunctions

To increase the number of active sites and defects in TiO₂ and promote rapid and efficient transfer of photogenerated charges, a g-C₃N₄@C-TiO₂ composite photocatalyst was prepared via in situ deposition of g-C₃N₄ on a carbon-doped anatase TiO₂ surface. The effects of carbon doping state and surface modification of g-C₃N₄ on the performance of g-C₃N₄@C-TiO₂ composite photocatalysts were studied by X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, UV-visible diffuse-reflectance spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, photoluminescence, and electron paramagnetic resonance. With increasing carbon doping content, the carbon doping state in TiO₂ gradually changed from gap to substitution doping. Although the number of oxygen vacancies gradually increased, the degradation efficiency of g-C₃N₄@C-TiO₂ for RhB (phenol) initially increased and subsequently decreased with increasing carbon content. The g-C₃N₄@10C-TiO₂ sample exhibited the highest apparent reaction rate constant of 0.036 min^?1 (0.039 min^?1) for RhB (phenol) degradation, which was 150 (139), 6.4 (6.8), 2.3 (3), and 1.7 (2.1) times higher than that of pure TiO₂, 10C-TiO₂, g-C₃N₄, and g-C₃N₄@TiO₂, respectively. g-C₃N₄ was grown in situ on the surface of C-TiO₂ by surface carbon hybridization and bonding. The resultant novel g-C₃N₄@C-TiO₂ photocatalyst exhibited direct Z-scheme heterojunctions with non-local impurity levels. The high photocatalytic activity can be attributed to the synergistic effects of the improved visible light response ability, higher photogenerated electron transfer efficiency, and redox ability arising from Z-type heterojunctions.     

g-C3N4碳位掺杂电学及光学性质的分析

使用第一性原理研究了C位掺杂的g-C₃N₄的电学性质和光学性质,掺杂原子为B、P、S. g-C₃N₄有C1位和C2 位两种对称位碳原子,其中在C1 位上的掺杂易于C2 位,掺杂体系也较C2 位稳定. 相比于磷和硫在g-C₃N₄上的掺杂,硼掺杂最易于进行. 掺杂后体系的晶体结构之间差别较大,这与掺杂原子的大小以及电负性有关. 由轨道布居分布可知,掺杂后的硼、磷、硫原子价电子发生了变化,表明掺杂原子发生了杂化,与相邻原子以强的共价键相连. 掺杂原子与被取代的碳原子之间的价电子差异导致了能带的增加. 在原来的体系中,掺杂后的体系出现了一条新的能带,因此导致实际带隙下降,表明了掺杂后的体系导电性能增强. 对纯g-C₃N₄及掺杂g-C₃N₄的光学性质分析表明,g-C₃N₄的光学吸收主要在紫外光区,掺杂磷和硫后对g-C₃N₄的光吸收波长范围无改变,掺杂硼后的g-C₃N₄光吸收不再局限于紫外光区,而且延伸至可见光区和红外光区,并在红外光区有很强的吸收,表明g-C₃N₄掺杂硼后能大大地提高光催化效率. 电子能量损失光谱和光导率谱以及介电常数都佐证了上述观点.     

Efficient Z-scheme g-C3N4/MoO3 heterojunction photocatalysts decorated with carbon quantum dots: improved visible-light absorption and charge separation

Z-scheme heterojunction photocatalysts based on g-C₃N₄ generally need to recombine g-C₃N₄ and a wide bandgap semiconductor. This structure is limited by the large bandgap of the constituent material, which can effectively suppress carrier recombination while limiting the absorption of visible light. Due to the superior up-conversion photoluminescence properties of the carbon quantum dots (CQDs), this dilemma can be solved ingeniously by adding CQDs to the composite. Moreover, the charge reservoirs of CQDs are conducive to the charge carrier separation effect. In this work, a novel CQDs-modified Z-type photocatalyst is constructed and the successful implantation of CQDs is demonstrated. The composite catalyst exhibits broad-spectrum response to visible light and the overall performance is obviously superior to that of the binary MoO₃/g-C₃N₄ heterojunction. The high efficiency and versatility of the degradation imply that the newly prepared CQDs/g-C₃N₄/MoO₃ is a versatile photocatalyst for the removal of various target pollutants in the environment.

     

氮缺陷石墨相氮化碳的制备及其光催化降解环境有机污染物性能

通过在三聚氰胺热分解过程中加入NaHCO₃制备出具有氮缺陷的石墨相氮化碳（g-C₃N₄）,利用X射线衍射（XRD）、傅里叶变换红外光谱（FT-IR）、N₂吸附-脱附、X射线光电子能谱（XPS）、紫外-可见漫反射光谱（UV-vis DRS）和固体荧光光谱（PL）等方法对其进行表征,并在可见光（λ> 420nm）照射下,以水相中罗丹明B（RhB）的降解为模型反应,研究了该氮缺陷g-C₃N₄对有机污染物降解的光催化活性。结果表明,引入氮缺陷可以提高g-C₃N₄对可见光的吸收以及电子-空穴对的分离效率,进而提高g-C₃N₄的可见光催化活性。催化剂CNK0.005、CNK0.01和CNK0.05在30min内对RhB的降解率分别为79.8%、100.0%和87.6%;而在相同条件下,没有氮缺陷的g-C₃N₄对RhB的降解率仅为59.8%。     

In-situ polymerization for PPy/g-C3N4 composites with enhanced visible light photocatalytic performance

Polypyrrole-modified graphitic carbon nitride composites (PPy/g-C₃N₄) are fabricated using an in-situ polymerization method to improve the visible light photocatalytic activity of g-C₃N₄. The PPy/g-C₃N₄ is applied to the photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue (MB) under visible light irradiation. Various characterization techniques are employed to investigate the relationship between the structural properties and photoactivities of the as-prepared composites. Results show that the specific surface area of the PPy/g-C₃N₄ composites increases upon assembly of the amorphous PPy nanoparticles on the g-C₃N₄ surface. Owing to the strong conductivity, the PPy can be used as a transition channel for electrons to move onto the g-C₃N₄ surface, thus inhibiting the recombination of photogenerated carriers of g-C₃N₄ and improving the photocatalytic performance. The elevated light adsorption of PPy/g-C₃N₄ composites is attributed to the strong absorption coefficient of PPy. The composite containing 0.75 wt% PPy exhibits a photocatalytic efficiency that is 3 times higher than that of g-C₃N₄ in 2 h. Moreover, the degradation kinetics follow a pseudo-first-order model. A detailed photocatalytic mechanism is proposed with ·OH and ·O₂^? radicals as the main reactive species. The present work provides new insights into the mechanistic understanding of PPy in PPy/g-C₃N₄ composites for environmental applications.     

Novel synthesis of Z-scheme α-Bi2O3/g-C3N4 composite photocatalyst and its enhanced visible light photocatalytic performance: Influence of calcination temperature

In this study, α-Bi₂O₃/g-C₃N₄ nanocomposite with direct Z-scheme was successfully prepared through calcination of BiOCOOH/g-C₃N₄ precursor at different temperature. Meanwhile, the effect of calcination temperature on the physicochemical properties of α-Bi₂O₃/g-C₃N₄ was studied. All results confirmed that calcination temperature greatly influences structural, morphology, surface states, photoelectrochemical property and photocatalytic (PC) performance of α-Bi₂O₃/g-C₃N₄ composite. Furthermore, the α-Bi₂O₃/g-C₃N₄ composite was applied as photocatalyst to degrade amido black 10B dye under visible light irradiation. It was found that the composite synthesized at 400 °C exhibited the highest PC performance due to the intense visible light absorbance and high separation efficiency of electron and hole pairs. Besides, the possible PC mechanism was proposed that the photo-generated charge carrier migration in α-Bi₂O₃/g-C₃N₄ photocatalyst followed a Z-scheme structure. Finally, the stability test also manifest that the α-Bi₂O₃/g-C₃N₄ composite photocatalyst has good stability and reusability, which was a promising candidate for wastewater treatment.     

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.     

石墨相氮化碳/二氧化锡复合材料的制备及光催化性能

采用热聚合法和水热法相结合的方法制备了g-C_3N_4/SnO_2复合光催化剂。利用XRD、SEM、TEM、FT-IR和UV-Vis DRS等多种测试手段对所得样品的物相结构、微观形貌和吸光特性等进行了表征。结果表明,异质结构复合光催化剂的最大光吸收边位置相对纯相SnO_2发生了明显的红移,并且SnO_2颗粒均匀分布于g-C_3N_4表面,其中最优组分(50%-g-C_3N_4/SnO_2)光催化降解染料罗丹明B(RhB)的效率达到了纯相g-C_3N_4的3.78倍。     

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.     

Bi2WO6/g-C3N4复合型催化剂的制备及其可见光光催化性能

利用溶剂热法, 把Bi₂WO₆纳米颗粒植入g-C₃N₄层间和表面成功地制备了Bi₂WO₆/g-C₃N₄复合型光催化剂。通过XRD、SEM、TEM、BET和UV-Vis分别对样品的结构、组成、形貌、比表面积、光学性能进行了表征。结果表明, g-C₃N₄层状结构被部分剥离成碎片且与Bi₂WO₆纳米颗粒形成了复合物。Bi₂WO₆/g-C₃N₄复合型光催化剂与单一Bi₂WO₆相比不仅扩展了可见光的响应范围、增大了比表面还加速了光生电子与空穴的分离。结果表明, Bi₂WO₆的最佳负载量为60wt%时, 复合型光催化剂具有最高的可见光催化活性且性能稳定、易回收。     

类石墨相氮化碳改性研究进展

类石墨相氮化碳(g-C3N4)是一种不含金属的半导体材料,它具有制备方法简单、合成原材料价格低廉、含量丰富,具有很好的物理化学性质及热稳定性等优点,并且其较窄的禁带宽度满足可以直接吸收一部分可见光的要求,这些特有的优势使其一度成为人们研究和关注的焦点.然而,它的比表面积小、光生电子和空穴复合率高以及可见光利用率不足等弊...     

Vinylene-Linked Covalent Organic Frameworks (COFs) with Symmetry-Tuned Polarity and Photocatalytic Activity

The polarity of a semiconducting molecule affects its intrinsic photophysical properties, which can be tuned by varying the molecular geometry. Herein, we developed a D_3h-symmetric tricyanomesitylene as a new monomer which could be reticulated into a vinylene-linked covalent organic framework (g-C₅₄N₆-COF) via Knoevenagel condensation with another D_3h-symmetric monomer 2,4,6-tris(4′-formyl-biphenyl-4-yl)-1,3,5-triazine. Replacing tricyanomesitylene with a C_2v-symmetric 3,5-dicyano-2,4,6-trimethylpyridine gave a less-symmetric vinylene-linked COF (g-C₅₂N₆-COF). The octupolar conjugated characters of g-C₅₄N₆-COF were reflected in its scarce solvatochromic effects either in ground or excited states, and endowed it with more promising semiconducting behavior as compared with g-C₅₂N₆-COF, such as enhanced light-harvesting and excellent photo-induced charge generation and separation. Along with the matched energy level, g-C₅₄N₆-COF enabled the two-half reactions of photocatalytic water splitting with an average O₂ evolution rate of 51.0 μmol h⁻¹ g⁻¹ and H₂ evolution rate of 2518.9 μmol h⁻¹ g⁻¹. Such values are among the highest of state-of-the-art COF photocatalysts.     

Bi2WO6/g-C3N4复合型催化剂的制备及其可见光光催化性能

利用溶剂热法,把Bi2WO6纳米颗粒植入g-C3N4层间和表面成功地制备了Bi2WO6/g-C3N4复合型光催化剂。通过XRD、SEM、TEM、BET和UV-Vis分别对样品的结构、组成、形貌、比表面积、光学性能进行了表征。结果表明,g-C3N4层状结构被部分剥离成碎片且与Bi2WO6纳米颗粒形成了复合物。Bi2WO6/g-C3N4复合型光催化剂与单一Bi2WO6相比不仅扩展了可见光的响应范围、增大了比表面还加速了光生电子与空穴的分离。结果表明,Bi2WO6的最佳负载量为60wt%时,复合型光催化剂具有最高的可见光催化活性且性能稳定、易回收。     

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.