Metal/Graphitic Carbon Nitride Composites: Synthesis,Structures, and Applications

Graphitic carbon nitride (g‐C₃N₄) has been widely used in fields related to energy and materials science. However, nanostructured g‐C₃N₄ photocatalysts synthesized by traditional thermal polycondensation methods have the disadvantage of small specific surface areas and wide band gaps; these limit the catalytic activity and application range of g‐C₃N₄. Based on the unique nanostructure of g‐C₃N₄, it is a feasible method to modify g‐C₃N₄ with metals to design novel metal–semiconductor composites. Metals alter the photochemical properties of g‐C₃N₄, in particular, narrow the band gap and expand photoabsorption into the visible range, which improves the photocatalytic performance. This review covers recent progress in metal/g‐C₃N₄ nanocomposites for photocatalysts, organic systems, biosensors, and so on. The aim is to summarize the synthetic methods, nanostructures, and applications of metal/g‐C₃N₄ nanocomposite materials, as well as discuss future research directions in these areas.