Highly efficient visible light phenyl modified carbon nitride/TiO2 photocatalyst for environmental applications

• Published in: Applied surface science 2020-11, Vol.531, p.147394, Article 147394
• Main Authors: Porcu, Stefania, Castellino, Micaela, Roppolo, Ignazio, Carbonaro, Carlo Maria, Palmas, Simonetta, Mais, Laura, Casula, Maria Francesca, Neretina, Svetlana, Hughes, Robert A., Secci, Francesco, Ricci, Pier Carlo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Carbon nitride; Organic-inorganic hybrid materials; Photocatalyst
• ISSN: 0169-4332; 1873-5584
• DOI: 10.1016/j.apsusc.2020.147394

[Display omitted] •A new hybrid material based on Phenyl doped Carbon Nitride and TiO2 was obtained.•Very efficient organic to TiO2 energy transfer (photoinduced electron transfer).•Composite materials demonstrated superior visible light activity to pure TiO2.•The visible activity of the composite is higher than g-C3N4/TiO2. Eco-sustainable solutions for the neutralization of air and water pollutants have increasingly gravitated toward the use of heterogeneous photocatalysts. This approach, which transforms pollutants into harmless substances through a light-driven chemical reaction on a catalytic surface, must comply with eco-sustainability requirements and be easily applicable. Semiconductor-based photocatalysis is a promising pathway for the degradation of environmental pollutants and, among all the various semiconductors used, titanium dioxide has proved itself to be the foremost material for environmental remediation due to its highly desirable photocatalytic properties. Titanium dioxide, however, poorly exploits the visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum due to the relatively large band-gap of its anatase phase, and as such, the UV portion of the solar spectrum is largely responsible for its photocatalytic activity. Herein, we demonstrate a highly efficient visible light hybrid catalyst based on titanium dioxide and phenyl carbon nitride (PhCN). With the organic component providing a broad absorption up to 600 nm and fast charge exchange to the conduction band of TiO2, the combination allows for the highly efficient photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine B under visible excitation.