Abstract
Spherical photocatalyst based on ordered mesoporous carbon and graphitic carbon nitride with core/shell structure (CS/GCN) was successfully synthesized via facile electrostatic self-assembly strategy. The photocatalytic properties of the hybrid were evaluated by the decomposition of Acid Red 18 under simulated solar light irradiation in comparison to the bulk graphitic carbon nitride (GCN). The results clearly revealed that coupling of carbon nitride with mesoporous carbon allows the catalyst to form with superior photocatalytic performance. The photoactivity of CS/GCN was over nine times higher than that of pristine GCN. Introducing mesoporous carbon into GCN induced higher surface area of the heterojunction and also facilitated the contact surface between the two phases. The synergistic effect between those two components enhanced the visible light-harvesting efficiency and improved photoinduced charge carrier generation, and consequently their proper separation. The electrochemical behavior of the obtained composite was also evaluated by electrochemical impedance, transient photocurrent response and linear sweep potentiometry measurements. The results confirmed that transport and separation of charge carriers in the hybrid was enhanced in comparison to the reference bulk graphitic carbon nitride. Detailed electrochemical, photoluminescence and radical scavenger tests enabled determination of the possible mechanism of photocatalytic process. This work presents new insights to design a core/shell hybrid through the simple preparation process, which can be successfully used as an efficient photocatalyst for the treatment of wastewater containing dyes under solar light irradiation.
Highlights
Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3 N4, graphitic carbon nitride (GCN)) has received huge scientific interest due to its many advantages, including easy preparation, non-toxicity, high chemical and thermal stability, and moderate band gap leading to good visible-light response [1,2,3,4,5]
The spherical core/shell hybrid based on ordered mesoporous carbon and graphitic carbon nitride was prepared via simple and reproducible approach
The synergistic effect caused by above-mentioned components heterojunction improved carbon nitride properties and successfully eliminated the major drawbacks which hindered its industrial application
Summary
Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3 N4 , GCN) has received huge scientific interest due to its many advantages, including easy preparation, non-toxicity, high chemical and thermal stability, and moderate band gap leading to good visible-light response [1,2,3,4,5]. It has been revealed that formation of core/shell nanostructures is considered as a promising method to increase the contact surface between the two phases, and as a consequence, to enhance the visible light-harvesting efficiency and photocatalytic activity of nanostructured catalysts. It was found that CuFe2 O4 /GCN with mass ratio of 2:1 exhibited superior activity as compared to a single component of CuFe2 O4 or GCN This is due to the elevation of the separation efficiency of photogenerated electron–hole pairs, resulted from the heterojunction between GCN and CuFe2 O4. The CuFe2 O4 /GCN could efficiently degrade various organic pollutants under vis-light irradiation and exhibit an excellent photocatalytic performance after many cycles without considerable activity loss. The spherical core/shell hybrid (CS/GCN) was prepared via facile chemical route in which the bulk GCN was protonated using strong oxidant and further deposited on the surface of mesoporous carbon spheres.
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