Effect of template-induced surface species on electronic structure and photocatalytic activity of g-C3N4

Abstract In view of the fact that the photocatalytic activity of graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) is greatly influenced by its electronic structure, herein, effect of templates induced surface species variation on the electronic structure and photocatalytic activity of the templated g-C3N4 was investigated. By mixing the precursor of cyanamide with different templates (SiO2, Al2O3 and template-free) in the preparation of graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4), carbon nitrides with different surface species were obtained. The obtained carbon nitride (g-C3N4-Si) templated by SiO2 nanoparticles exhibits enlarged band gap (3.26 eV) and enhanced photo-degradation ability towards Methyl Orange (MO) compared to that of bulk g-C3N4 (2.67 eV) synthesized from direct condensation/carbonization of melamine and Al2O3-templated g-C3N4-Al (2.76 eV). Detailed characterizations confirm that the introduction of templates in the synthesis process resulted in more non-graphitic species (sp3 C C and NHx) on the surface of the derived carbon nitrides, exerting remarkable effect on the electronic structure and photocatalytic performance.