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Fusiform‐Shaped g‐C 3 N 4 Capsules with Superior Photocatalytic Activity
Author(s) -
Jiang Zhixiang,
Zhang Xiao,
Chen HsuehShih,
Yang Ping,
Jiang San Ping
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
small
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.785
H-Index - 236
eISSN - 1613-6829
pISSN - 1613-6810
DOI - 10.1002/smll.202003910
Subject(s) - photocatalysis , materials science , nanostructure , band gap , nucleation , catalysis , carbon nitride , chemical engineering , nanotechnology , optoelectronics , chemistry , organic chemistry , engineering
Carbon nitride (g‐C 3 N 4 ) nanostructure rebuilding is an effective means to modify its photocatalytic properties, especially the hollow micron‐nanostructure. The increased scattering in the body effectively improves the light utilization efficiency and improves catalytic properties. In this work, fusiform‐shaped g‐C 3 N 4 capsules are created by controlling the nucleation kinetics of supramolecular assemblies. The fusiform‐shaped capsule micron‐nanostructure is synthesized with ultrathin wall thickness and adjusted carbon/nitride ratios which decrease the recombination rate of photo‐generated carriers. The hollow nanostructure and relatively higher specific surface area of the fusiform‐shaped capsule effectively enhance light scattering inside body and lead to an enhanced carrier utilization efficiency. Moreover, the decrease of bandgap and relatively negative conduction band position affect the response of hollow fusiform‐shaped g‐C 3 N 4 capsules (Hf‐g‐C 3 N 4 ) in visible light region and improve the photo‐reducing performance. In term of H 2 evolution property, Hf‐g‐C 3 N 4 has been improved to 7052 µmol g −1 h −1 , which is 10.9 times higher compared with bulk structure. More importantly, Hf‐g‐C 3 N 4 can produce CH 4 at the rate of 1.63 µmol g −1 h −1 without help of co‐catalyst and hole sacrificial agent in the photocatalytic reduction reaction of CO 2 to CH 4 . At same time, the selective photocatalytic reduction of CO 2 is another advantage of Hf‐g‐C 3 N 4 .