Visible Light-driven Photocatalytic Performance Research Articles

All-Solid Z-Scheme Bi-BiOCl/AgCl Heterojunction Microspheres for Improved Electron-Hole Separation and Enhanced Visible Light-Driven Photocatalytic Performance.

All-solid Z-scheme Bi-BiOCl/AgCl heterojunction microspheres are successfully prepared via hydrothermal, NaBH4 reduction and chemical deposition strategy. They are tested by various characterization methods, and they show that metal Bi is present after reduction and AgCl nanoparticles are successfully compounded onto BiOCl. Bi plays the role of a bridge connecting the two semiconductors of BiOCl and AgCl. All-solid Z-scheme heterojunction structures are formed successfully. The narrow band gap of the Z-scheme Bi-BiOCl/AgCl heterojunction microspheres is about 2.17 eV, which can expand the optical response range. Moreover, the photocatalytic hydrogen production rate still reaches 198.2 μmol h-1 g-1, extends the electron transport life, inhibits the recombination of electron hole pairs, and improves the photocatalytic activity.

Excellent visible light-driven photocatalytic performance and band alignment of g-C3N4/TiO2 nanotube heterostructures

Visible-light-driven graphite-like carbon nitride/TiO2 nanotubes (g-C3N4/TNTs) heterostructures were synthesized by hydrothermal and calcination processes. The g-C3N4/TNTs heterostructures with the different weight ratios of g-C3N4 to TNTs, from 0.5 wt% to 5 wt%, were characterized by modern methods of physical-chemical analysis. The photocatalytic activity of materials was evaluated by the degradation of methylene blue (MB) dye in aqueous under the visible light. Results showed that the MB photocatalytic degradation performance of the g-C3N4/TNTs heterostructures was enhanced, and that of the 2% g-C3N4/TNTs witnessed the highest efficiency (81%, 180 min). The photocatalytic activity was improved, thanks to the extended optical absorption range and enhanced separation of the photoinduced electron-hole pairs. Furthermore, the band alignment of the g-C3N4/TNTs heterostructures was determined by the preliminary calculation.

Visible Light-driven Photocatalytic Performance of Zno Coupled with Up-conversion Phosphors for the Removal of Methylene Blue

In this work it was investigated the photocatalytic activity of ZnO coupled with inorganic “up-conversion” phosphors for the treatment of aqueous solutions polluted with methylene blue (MB), in the presence of visible light irradiation. Specifically, the successfully prepared “up-conversion” phosphors nanoparticles emit, when excited with visible light, UV light with main emission at 365 nm. The photocatalytic tests were carried out in a cylindrical pyrex photoreactor equipped with a magnetic stirrer to ensure the continuous mixing of the physical mixtures of “up-conversion” phosphors and commercial ZnO nanoparticles in the solution and irradiated by visible light instead of UV light normally required to excite ZNO. Experimental results were analysed by evaluating the MB decolourization through spectrophotometric method and the total organic carbon (TOC) through high temperature combustion method. In particular, it was found that the photocatalytic performances obtained using ZnO nanoparticles coupled with “up-conversion” phosphors are strongly increased compared to the use of ZnO alone. These results confirmed the enhancement of photocatalytic performances induced by UV photons emitted by “up-conversion” phosphors nanoparticles, able to activate ZnO, demonstrating how their use in photocatalytic systems can be an alternative to the traditional UV lamps, thus preserving human health, environmental and, at the same time, allows to save the energy in process management.

Enhanced visible light-driven photocatalytic performance of Zr doped CeO2 nanoparticles

In this study, pristine and Zr-doped CeO2 nanoparticles with chemical formula Ce1−xZrxO2 (x = 0, 0.05, 0.075 and 0.1) have been prepared through facile hydrothermal process. The influence of Zr doping on the microstructure, thermal, optical and photocatalytic properties of CeO2 was systematically explored through various analytical techniques. Analysis of the XRD data reveals cubic fluorite structure of the samples with average crystallite size of 12, 15, 21 and 30 nm respectively for different Zr doping. The optical properties of the nanoparticles were studied through UV–visible absorption and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Raman spectroscopy measurements were performed to examine the chemical state and microstructure of the synthesized materials. The functional groups and mode of vibrations have been identified by the Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. A reduction in the optical band gap of CeO2 (from 3.25 to 3.10 eV) is observed on systematic Zr doping. In addition, significant enhancement in the photocatalytic performance is also noticed for the doped samples (92.2%) as compared to the pristine one (68.7%) for the degradation of methylene blue (MB) dye under visible light irradiation.

Insight into visible light-driven photocatalytic performance of direct Z-scheme Bi2WO6/BiOI composites constructed in -situ

Bi2WO6/BiOI composites with enhanced photocatalytic performance were constructed in-situ by a hydrothermal routine. The Bi2WO6/BiOI composites were studied by Brunauer -Emmett-Teller (BET), X-ray diffraction patterns (XRD), UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), surface photovoltage spectroscopy (SPS), electron spin-resonance (ESR) spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results support the coexistence of Bi2WO6 and BiOI in the composites. All the Bi2WO6/BiOI composites display higher separation rate of photoinduced carriers than BiOI. OH and·O2− were formed in the composite photocatalytic system. Finally, a direct Z-scheme was proposed for the Bi2WO6/BiOI composites.

Non-metal boron modified carbon nitride tube with enhanced visible light-driven photocatalytic performance

Non-metallic boron modified graphitic carbon nitrogen (BCN) tube was prepared by a simple hydrothermal method using melamine as initial material and boric acid as boron source. Through thermal treatment, boron was directly introduced into g-C3N4 tube structure. Boron modified could increase the specific surface area of g-C3N4 and enhance its visible-light responsiveness. Importantly, the separation of the photogenerated electrons and holes in BCN tube was significantly enhanced, which can contribute to the improvement of photocatalytic activity. The photocatalytic activity of BCN tube was evaluated by degrading Rhodamine B (RhB) and Methylene blue (MB) experiments under visible light irradiation. The prepared BCN-3 sample (B: 0.36 mol %) showed the best photocatalytic activity when the initial material molar ratio of melamine to boric acid was 1:1. The degradation rate of BCN-3 to RhB was 99.3% under visible light irradiation for 90 min. The catalyst also showed good degradation effect for MB.

Fabrication of Novel Cyanuric Acid Modified g-C3N4/Kaolinite Composite with Enhanced Visible Light-Driven Photocatalytic Activity

A novel kind of cyanuric-acid-modified graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4)/kaolinite (m-CN/KA) composite with enhanced visible light-driven photocatalytic performance was fabricated through a facile two-step process. Rhodamine B (RhB) was taken as the target pollutant to study the photocatalytic performance of the synthesized catalysts. It is indicated that the cyanuric acid modification significantly enhanced photocatalytic activity under visible light illumination in comparison with the other reference samples. The apparent rate constant of m-CN/KA is almost 1.9 times and 4.0 times those of g-C3N4/kaolinite and bare g-C3N4, respectively. The superior photocatalytic performance of m-CN/KA could be ascribed, not only to the generation of abundant pore structure and reactive sites, but also to the efficient separation of the photogenerated electron-hole pairs. Furthermore, the possible photocatalytic degradation mechanism of m-CN/KA was also presented in this paper. It could be anticipated that this novel and efficient, metal-free, mineral-based photocatalytic composite has great application prospects in organic pollutant degradation.

Magnetically separable Fe3O4@C/BiOBr heterojunction for the enhanced visible light-driven photocatalytic performance

In this study, the magnetically recyclable Fe3O4@C/BiOBr heterojunction with enhanced visible light-driven photocatalytic ability was obtained by two-step solvothermal method. The phase, morphology, and structure of the samples were investigated by XRD, FESEM, HRTEM, and XPS. The Fe3O4@C/BiOBr heterojunction was composed of Fe3O4@C sphere and BiOBr microsphere with diameters of 200 nm and 1000 nm, respectively. The photocatalytic performance of Fe3O4@C/BiOBr composite for RhB was examined under visible light irradiation. The photocatalytic activity of Fe3O4@C/BiOBr composite was much higher than that of pure BiOBr and Fe3O4@C. After 35 min of irradiation, 97% of RhB could be removed with the Fe3O4@C/BiOBr photocatalyst. Based on radical trapping experiments of active species, the mechanism of enhanced photocatalytic performance was proposed. In addition, the superparamagnetic property of the photocatalyst not only allows its easy recyclability by an external magnetic field but also maintains high photocatalytic activity after five cyclic experiments.

Physical Adsorption and Photocatalytic Activity of Titanium Dioxide Nanotube and Graphene Oxide Composite

In this study, we synthesized graphene oxide (GO) by modified low temperature Hummer’s method and in situ hydrothermally grown TiO­2 nanotube (TNT) onGO sheet. Transmission electron microscopic (TEM) images showed the homogeneous formation of TNT with the mean diameter of ~8 nm and the co-existence of TNT and GO in the composite sample. X-ray differaction pattern of GO indicated the successful fabrication. The UV-vis measurement with methylene blue indicated the improvement of physical adsorption of the composite samples.
 Keywords
 TNTs, GO, physical adsorption, composite
 References
 [1] C. Dette et al., “TiO¬2 Anatase with a Bandgap in the Visible Region,” Nano Lett., vol. 14, no. 11, pp. 6533–6538, 2014.[2] A. Ibhadon and P. Fitzpatrick, “Heterogeneous Photocatalysis: Recent Advances and Applications,” Catalysts, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 189–218, 2013.[3] Y. T. Liang, B. K. Vijayan, K. A. Gray, and M. C. Hersam, “Minimizing graphene defects enhances titania nanocomposite-based photocatalytic reduction of CO2 for improved solar fuel production,” Nano Letters, vol. 11, no. 7. pp. 2865–2870, 2011.[4] C. L. Wong, Y. N. Tan, and A. R. Mohamed, “A review on the formation of titania nanotube photocatalysts by hydrothermal treatment,” Journal of Environmental Management, vol. 92, no. 7. pp. 1669–1680, 2011.[5] Z. Bo et al., “Synthesis and stabilization of small Pt nanoparticles on TiO2partially masked by SiO2,” Appl. Catal. A Gen., vol. 551, pp. 122–128, 2018.[6] K. Bubacz, B. Tryba, and A. W. Morawski, “The role of adsorption in decomposition of dyes on TiO 2 and N-modified TiO 2 photocatalysts under UV and visible light irradiations,” Materials Research Bulletin, vol. 47, no. 11. pp. 3697–3703, 2012.[7] M. Faraji and N. Mohaghegh, “Ag/TiO2-nanotube plates coated with reduced graphene oxide as photocatalysts,” Surf. Coatings Technol., vol. 288, pp. 144–150, 2016.[8] L. C. Sim, and K. H. Leong, “Graphene oxide and Ag engulfed TiO2 nanotube arrays for enhanced electron mobility and visiblelight-driven photocatalytic performance,” Journal of Materials Chemistry A, vol. 2, no. 15. pp. 5315–5322, 2014.[9] C.-Y. Tsai, C.-W. Liu, C. Fan, H.-C. Hsi, and T.-Y. Chang, “Synthesis of a SnO 2 /TNT Heterojunction Nanocomposite as a High-Performance Photocatalyst,” J. Phys. Chem. C, vol. 121, no. 11, pp. 6050–6059, 2017.[10] S. Gayathri, M. Kottaisamy, and V. Ramakrishnan, “Facile microwave-assisted synthesis of titanium dioxide decorated graphene nanocomposite for photodegradation of organic dyes,” AIP Adv., vol. 5, no. 12, 2015.[11] H. Tao, X. Liang, Q. Zhang, and C. T. Chang, “Enhanced photoactivity of graphene/titanium dioxide nanotubes for removal of Acetaminophen,” Appl. Surf. Sci., vol. 324, pp. 258–264, 2015.[12] M.Z. Wang , F. X. Liang , B. Nie , L.H. Zeng , L. X. Zheng , Peng Lv , Y. Q. Yu , C. Xie, Y. Y. Li, “TiO2 Nanotube Array/Monolayer Graphene Film Schottky Junction Ultraviolet Light Photodetectors." Part. Part. Character. Syst., vol. 30, 7, pp. 630-636, 2013. [13] J. Yu, T. Ma, and S. Liu, “Enhanced photocatalytic activity of mesoporous TiO 2 aggregates by embedding carbon nanotubes as electron-transfer channel,” Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., vol. 13, no. 8, pp. 3491–3501, 2011.[14] H. L. Poh, F. Šaněk, A. Ambrosi, G. Zhao, Z. Sofer, and M. Pumera, “Graphenes prepared by Staudenmaier, Hofmann and Hummers methods with consequent thermal exfoliation exhibit very different electrochemical properties,” Nanoscale, vol. 4, no. 11, p. 3515, 2012.[15] P. B. Arthi G and L. BD, “A Simple Approach to Stepwise Synthesis of Graphene Oxide Nanomaterial,” J. Nanomed. Nanotechnol., vol. 06, no. 01, 2015.[16] M. Faraldos and A. Bahamonde, “Environmental applications of titania-graphene photocatalysts,” Catal. Today, vol. 285, pp. 13–28, 2017.

Facile synthesis of core-shell ZnO/Cu2O heterojunction with enhanced visible light-driven photocatalytic performance

As p–n heterojunction photocatalysts usually possess dramatically improved photocatalytic activity than single photocatalysts, a novel ZnO/Cu2O heterojunction was designed by a facile self-templating method in this study. The crystal structure, chemical composition, surface morphology, and optical property of ZnO/Cu2O heterojunction were investigated to clarify the structure-property correlation. Scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscope images proved the uniform core-shell submicrospheres of ZnO/Cu2O, in which a three-dimensional flower-like ZnO core was coated by a shell comprised of Cu2O nanoparticles. The photoresponse result showed that the band gap of the ZnO/Cu2O core-shell submicrospheres became narrow, and the absorption edge shifted from the ultraviolet region (380 nm) to the visible region (500 nm) compared with the pure ZnO microflowers. For the degradation of Rhodamine B under visible light, the photocatalytic efficiency of ZnO/Cu2O submicrospheres reached 96% within 40 min of reaction time, which was 3.8 times higher than that of pure ZnO microflowers and up to 4.5 times than that for pure Cu2O nanoparticles. The remarkable visible light-driven photocatalytic performance is mainly attributed to the extended photoresponse range and effective separation of the photo-generated electron-hole pairs in the unique heterojunction.

Ammonia-evaporation-induced construction of three-dimensional NiO/g-C3N4 composite with enhanced adsorption and visible light-driven photocatalytic performance

Novel visible light-driven heterostructured NiO/g-C3N4 photocatalyst has been designed and successfully prepared via ammonia-evaporation-induced method. The synthetic strategy consists of grafting the surface of g-C3N4 with Ni(NH3)62+ complex followed by its hydrolysis at lower pH to form nano-wrinkled thin film of α-Ni(OH)2. The final NiO/g-C3N4 hybrid was obtained after calcination of the Ni(OH)2/g-C3N4 precursor at 350 °C. Scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, FTIR, N2 adsorption/desorption, UV-vis diffuse reflectance and photoluminescence spectroscopy were used to characterize the resulting material. Our results revealed the formation of meso-/macroporous three-dimensional hierarchical honeycomb-like structure with high BET surface area (141 m2 g−1). The photocatalytic performance of the composite under visible light (λ > 400 nm) irradiation was evaluated through degradation of Malachite Green (MG) from aqueous medium at room temperature (25 °C). For the sake of comparison, the physico-chemical and photocatalytic properties of the pristine g-C3N4 and nanostructured NiO were also examined. Results indicated that NiO/g-C3N4 is much more active than pristine g-C3N4 and NiO in the photodegradation of MG. The enhanced photocatalytic performance of the composite was mainly attributed to the combination of high adsorption capacity which facilitates the direct redox reactions of dye and the efficient inhibition of photo-generated electron-hole pair recombination. Superoxide radicals (•O2−) and photo-generated holes (h+) were found to be the main active species in the process.

Moderate Bacterial Etching Allows Scalable and Clean Delamination of g-C3N4 with Enriched Unpaired Electrons for Highly Improved Photocatalytic Water Disinfection.

Delamination treatment is crucial in promoting the activity of bulk graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4). However, most of the currently used methods of exfoliating bulk g-C3N4 to achieve g-C3N4 thin layers suffer from low yield and environmental pollution. Herein, we developed a facile bacterial etching approach for the preparation of high-quality g-C3N4 nanosheets by exfoliating bulk g-C3N4 under room temperature. Morphology and physicochemical characterizations show that the bacteria-treated g-C3N4 (BT-CN) samples, especially BT-CN-2d, have a lamina-like two-dimensional (2D) in-plane porous structure, a significantly enlarged specific surface area (82.61 m2 g-1), and a remarkable narrow band gap (2.11 eV). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and electron paramagnetic resonance spectra confirm the dramatic enrichment of unpaired electron in the BT-CN-2d g-C3N4 nanosheets. EIS spectra and photocurrent tests indicate the fast electron transportation. As a result, the representative BT-CN-2d g-C3N4 photocatalyst shows an optimal visible light-driven photocatalytic performance in water disinfection (fourfold higher than bulk g-C3N4), as well as good cycle stability. This moderate and clean bacterial etching process can be realized in tens of gram scale in the laboratory and should be readily extended to kilogram scale. The present work provides fundamental knowledge about the scalable production of high-quality g-C3N4 by bioengineering method, offering extendable availability for designing and fabricating other functional 2D materials.

Three-dimensional Fe2O3–TiO2–graphene aerogel nanocomposites with enhanced adsorption and visible light-driven photocatalytic performance in the removal of RhB dyes

A series of Fe2O3 and TiO2 co-doped graphene aerogel (Fe2O3–TiO2–GA) nanocomposites with a unique 3D architecture are assembled by a one-pot hydrothermal method combined with freeze-drying. The one with 30wt% Fe2O3 exhibits the highest adsorptivity (95.0%) and the another with 25wt% Fe2O3 displays the highest total efficiency (97.7%) including adsorption and visible light-driven photocatalytic degradation for rhodamine B dyes (20.0mgL−1, 25mL) within 1h over 5.0mg of the nanocomposites. The materials also display satisfactory cyclic stability and the removal efficiency can be 81.8% even after four runs. Additionally, a related photocatalytic mechanism is proposed.

CTAB-Assisted Fabrication of Bi₂WO₆ Thin Nanoplates with High Adsorption and Enhanced Visible Light-Driven Photocatalytic Performance.

Two-dimensional thin Bi2WO6 nanoplates have been fabricated using a cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB)-assisted hydrothermal method. We investigated the proposed formation mechanism based on the crystalline structures of the thin Bi2WO6 nanoplates. The high adsorption ability and excellent visible-light driven photocatalytic activities of the Bi2WO6 nanoplates were illustrated, in view of exposed (001) facets of nanoplates possessing faster separation of photo-generated charge carriers and increased catalytically active sites. Such a cost-effective way to obtain Bi2WO6 nanoplates offers new possibilities for the design of adsorptive semiconductor photocatalysts with strengthened photocatalytic activities.

Recyclable CoFe2O4–Ag2O magnetic photocatalyst and its visible light-driven photocatalytic performance

A magnetically separable photocatalyst, the composite compound CoFe2O4–Ag2O, was fabricated successfully by a simple precipitation method and used for photodegradation of organic pollutants under visible light (>420 nm) irradiation. Its magnetic separation performance was evaluated. Results showed that the CoFe2O4–Ag2O with 60-wt% content of Ag2O had the best photocatalytic performance, stability, and magnetic separation performance. Methyl orange, methylene blue, rhodamine B, and phenol can be completely photodegraded by the CoFe2O4–Ag2O photocatalyst in a short period. After five cycles, CoFe2O4–Ag2O kept its performance stability. As prepared, CoFe2O4–Ag2O (60%) has a coercivity of 2500 Oe and a saturation magnetization of 22.45 emu g−1; it can be completely separated magnetically in 20 s with magnetic recovery mass rate of 85% under an external magnetic field. This superb photocatalytic performance and separation recovery confirms that the CoFe2O4–Ag2O photocatalyst is a promising candidate for future use in photo-oxidative degradation of organic contaminants.

Fabrication of Ag-Ag2O/reduced TiO2 nanophotocatalyst and its enhanced visible light driven photocatalytic performance for degradation of diclofenac solution

In this study, Ag-Ag2O/reduced TiO2 (denoted as Ag-Ag2O/r-TiO2) nano-photocatalyst had been fabricated through one-step solution reduction strategy in the presence of potassium borohydride. Afterwards, physicochemical properties of the resulting samples were investigated by scanning electron microscope (SEM), N2 adsorption/desorption isotherms, X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-vis DRS), electron spin resonance (ESR) and time-resolved surface photovoltage (TR-SPV) techniques. Results indicated that potassium borohydride treatment could simutaneously induce the generation of Ti3+ self-doping energy level between the forbidden band of TiO2 and metallic Ag species existed in the forms of Ag0 and Ag2O nanocrystalline, thereby resulting in the greatly enhanced visible light absorbance and photoinduced charge separation efficiency. In addition, the visible light driven (VLD) photocatalytic (PC) performance was evaluated through the degradation of diclofenac and generation of ·OH radicals. As-expected, Ag-Ag2O/r-TiO2 sample exhibited higher VLD PC performance and larger generation amount of ·OH radicals. Furthermore, the enhanced VLD PC mechanism was proposed and confirmed, which was mainly attributed to the synergistic effect originated from the localized SPR of Ag0 nanocrystalline and Ti3+ self-doping which responsible for the intense visible light absorbance, high photoinduced charge separation efficiency and VLD PC performance.

Preparation and characterization of zinc and copper co-doped WO3 nanoparticles: Application in photocatalysis and photobiology

In this study, pure, Zn, Cu, Zn,Cu co-doped WO3 nanoparticles samples were prepared by precipitation and co-precipitation methods. These nanoparticles were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDX), Dynamic light scattering (DLS), UV–visible and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The synthesized pure, Zn, Cu, Zn,Cu co-doped WO3 nanoparticles have smart optical properties and average sizes with 3.2, 3.12, 3.08 and 2.97eV of band-gap, 18.1, 23.2, 25.7 and 30.2nm, respectively. Photocatalytic activity of four nanoparticles was studying towards degradation of gentamicin antibiotic under ultraviolet and visible light irradiation. The result showed that Zn,Cu co-doped WO3 possessed high photocatalytic activity. The photocatalytic activity of WO3 nanoparticles could be remarkably increased by doping the Zn and Cu impurity. This can be attributed to the fact that the red shift of absorption edge and the trapping effect of the mono and co-doped WO3 nanoparticles. The research result presents a general and effective way to prepare different photocatalysts with enhanced visible and UV light-driven photocatalytic performance. Antibacterial activity of four different WO3 nanoparticles against Escherichia coli bacterium has been assessed by the agar disc method under light irradiation and dark medium. It is concluded from the present findings that WO3 nanoparticles can be used as an efficient antibacterial agent.

Visible light-driven photocatalytic degradation performance for methylene blue with different multi-morphological features of ZnS

SEM images of synthesized 3D ZnS microspheres self-assembled with various precursor substances by different hydrothermal synthesis methods: (a) dandelion-ZnS, (b) raspberry-ZnS, (c) ball-ZnS and (d) flower-ZnS.

Synthesis of high quality CuO nanoflakes and CuO–Au nanohybrids for superior visible light photocatalytic behavior

High-quality CuO nanoflakes and CuO–Au nanohybrids are synthesized by a facile wet chemistry strategy. Compared with pure CuO nanoflakes, CuO–Au nanohybrids exhibit superior visible light-driven photocatalytic performance and have a higher photocurrent density (46 mA cm−2).

Enhanced visible light-driven photocatalytic performance of ZnO–g-C3N4 coupled with graphene oxide as a novel ternary nanocomposite

This article reports a novel ternary nanocomposite consisting of ZnO, g-C3N4, and graphene oxide (GO) that provides enhanced photocatalytic performance and stability. The ZnO nanospheres disperse evenly and embed themselves in the porous g-C3N4. Composites with various g-C3N4 and GO to ZnO weight ratios were synthesized and characterized systematically. The results indicated that the absorption of binary g-C3N4/ZnO nanocomposites shifted to a lower energy compared to pure ZnO in a fashion consistent with the loading content of g-C3N4. Notably, the loading content of GO in the ZnO–g-C3N4 composite resulted in increased absorption in the visible range and improved charge separation efficiency, thereby drastically improving photocatalytic activity. Successful hybridization of ternary nanocomposite was confirmed by drastic quenching of fluorescence and broader visible light absorption. The optimal content of g-C3N4 in the ZnO–g-C3N4 composite was 50%, which exhibited the effective hybridization between ZnO and g-C3N4, and high photocatalytic efficiency. However, the photocatalytic degradation of the ternary nanocomposite showed performance that was two times greater than ZnO–g-C3N4, exhibiting 99.5% degradation efficiency after just 15min of light irradiation. The combined heterojunction and synergistic effects of this composite account for the improved photocatalytic activity.