Preparation of Cu modified g-C3N4 nanorod bundles for efficiently photocatalytic CO2 reduction.

Carbon nitride-based photocatalysts for CO2 reduction have received great attention. The introduction of transition metals can effectively improve the photocatalytic efficiency of carbon nitride. However, how to introduce transition metals into carbon nitride in more ways remains a challenge. Herein, the Cu modified g-C3N4 nanorod bundles (CCNBs) were prepared by chemical vapor co-deposition using the mixture of urea and chlorophyllin sodium copper salt as precursor. The prepared CCNBs exhibited excellent photocatalytic activity for CO2 reduction. The unique hierarchical structure was beneficial to enhance light harvesting. Besides, the introduction of uniformly dispersed Cu further improved the absorption capacity of visible light, increased active sites, and promoted the separation and transfer of carriers. The CO yield of CCNBs was 5 times higher than that of bulk g-C3N4, and showed excellent stability in cycle experiments. This work provides a strategy to prepare carbon nitride-based photocatalysts for efficient CO2 reduction.

Tubular g-C3N4/carbon framework for high-efficiency photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue.

The preparation of high-efficiency, pollution-free photocatalysts for water treatment has always been one of the research hotspots. In this paper, a carbon framework formed from waste grapefruit peel is used as the carrier. A simple one-step chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method allows tubular g-C3N4 to grow on the carbon framework. Tubular g-C3N4 increases the specific surface area of bulk g-C3N4 and enhances the absorption of visible light. At the same time, the carbon framework can effectively promote the separation and transfer of charges. The dual effects of static adsorption and photodegradation enable the g-C3N4/carbon (CNC) framework to quickly remove about 98% of methylene blue within 180 min. The recyclability indicates that the tubular g-C3N4 can stably exist on the carbon framework during the photodegradation process. In the dynamic photocatalytic test driven by gravity, roughly 77.65% of the methylene blue was degraded by the CNC framework. Our work provides an attractive strategy for constructing a composite carbon framework photocatalyst based on the tubular g-C3N4 structure and improving the photocatalytic performance.