title: A general nonaqueous sol-gel route to g-C3N4-coupling photocatalysts: the case of Z-scheme g-C3N4/TiO2with enhanced photodegradation toward RhB under visible-light.
abstract: The g-C3N4-coupling TiO2photocatalysts with controllable particle size as well as the interface contact were prepared by a general nonaqueous sol-gel method. The structural and morphological features of g-C3N4/TiO2were investigated through the X-ray diffraction, Fourier transformed infrared spectra, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy, respectively. It is found the TiO2nanoparticles with a size of 7.3 ± 1.6 nm are uniformly anchored on the surface of the g-C3N4nanosheets in isolation. The photocatalytic properties of as-prepared g-C3N4/TiO2were tested by degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) under visible light, and an enhanced activity is observed. The mechanism of the enhanced activity was further investigated through N2adsorption-desorption isotherms, UV-vis spectra, photoluminescence spectra, photoelectrochemical measurements, radical trapping experiments and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Furthermore, the photocatalytic performances of obtained g-C3N4/TiO2under sunlight were also evaluated in aspects of degradation efficiency and stability. The results indicate that the obtained g-C3N4/TiO2is one promising photocatalyst for practical applications. The study of as-prepared g-C3N4/TiO2also implies that the present method could be a general route of g-C3N4-coupling photocatalysts.
authors.affiliation: School of Materials Science and Engineering, Yunnan University, 650091 Kunming, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Yunnan University, 650091 Kunming, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: School of Materials Science and Engineering, Yunnan University, 650091 Kunming, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yuxiu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: School of Materials Science and Engineering, Yunnan University, 650091 Kunming, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Dongyang
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.affiliation: School of Materials Science and Engineering, Yunnan University, 650091 Kunming, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xinxin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xing
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Yunnan University, 650091 Kunming, People's Republic of China.|Yunnan Province Key Lab of Micro-Nano Materials and Technology, Yunnan University, 650091 Kunming, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yude
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang