Comprehensive investigations into the synergy of S-scheme heterojunction between nitrogen-doped ZnO nano-rods and g-C3N4 nanosheets for improved photocatalytic degradation

Abstract

In this work, N-ZnO nanorods decorated with 2D g-C3N4 prepared by hydrothermal synthesis are studied for their synergistic effect in regard to enhanced photocatalytic activity. The synthesized material is characterized with XRD, FESEM, EDX, TEM and HR-TEM to perform the structural, morphological and elemental analysis along with XPS and FTIR for tracking sample purity and to study the elemental composition on the surface of the material; UV–Visible spectroscopy and PL spectroscopy for investigating the optical properties, bandgap calculation and to inquire about the defects in the structure. N-ZnO/g-C3N4 shows remarkable photocatalytic MB degradation ability upon solar irradiation which is 2.8 and 1.2 times exceeds than pristine ZnO and g-C3N4, attributed to the s-scheme mechanism for charge migration. The construction of s-scheme heterojunction among N-ZnO and g-C3N4 generates an internal electric field that saliently promotes charge separation at the interface. Furthermore, post-stability test for 8 cycles with XRD and FTIR analysis to verify the material integrity is presented. The scavenger experiments revealed the involved active species. This research does seem to pique interest in the creation of cutting-edge photocatalysts that utilize the solar spectrum to remove harmful organic dyes from water.