Enhanced photocatalytic performance of S/Cd co-doped g-C3N4 nanorods for degradation of dyes

Abstract

Morphology control and multi-elemental doping are considered two effective strategies to improve the photocatalytic performance of graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4). Herein, a mild and convenient method was applied to synthesize S/Cd co-doped g-C3N4 nanorods with excellent photocatalytic performance. Under visible irradiation, the optimized sample could degrade 89.7 % methylene blue (MB) in 50 min and 96.5 % rhodamine B (RhB) in 15 min, whose degradation rates were 2.2 times and 23.2 times higher than that of pristine g-C3N4, respectively. Comprehensive investigation revealed that the presence of nanorods and co-doping of S and Cd led to a larger specific surface area, more nitrogen vacancies, and modification of band structure, which could considerably enhance the photocatalytic performance.