Issue

Vol. 8 No. 2 (2016)

AgCl/Ag/g-C3N4 Hybrid Composites: Preparation, Visible Light-Driven Photocatalytic Activity and Mechanism

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-015-0076-y
Yongchao Bao
Lab of Functional and Biomedical Nanomaterials, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266042, People’s Republic of China
Kezheng Chen
Lab of Functional and Biomedical Nanomaterials, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266042, People’s Republic of China

Corresponding Author: Kezheng Chen

kchen@qust.edu.cn

Nano-Micro Letters, Vol. 8 No. 2 (2016), Article Number: 182-192

Abstract

The ternary plasmonic AgCl/Ag/g-C3N4 photocatalysts were successfully fabricated by a modified deposition–precipitation method, through which Ag/AgCl nanoparticles (5–15 nm in size) were evenly dispersed on the surface of g-C3N4. The AgCl/Ag/g-C3N4 composites exhibited higher photocatalytic activity than Ag/AgCl and g-C3N4. The enhanced photocatalytic performance could be attributed to an efficient separation of electron–hole pairs through a Z-scheme mechanism, in which Ag nanoparticles acted as charge separation centers.

Keywords

AgCl/Ag/g-C3N4 Hybrid Photocatalytic activity
Bao, Yongchao, and Kezheng Chen. 2015. “AgCl/Ag/G-C3N4 Hybrid Composites: Preparation, Visible Light-Driven Photocatalytic Activity and Mechanism”. Nano-Micro Letters 8 (2):182-92. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-015-0076-y.
Download Citation
Endnote/Zotero/Mendeley (RIS)
BibTeX
References
  1. C. Wang, K. Maeda, A. Thomas, K. Takanabe, G. Xin, J.M. Carlsson, K. Domen, M. Antonietti, A metal-free polymeric photocatalyst for hydrogen production from water under visible light. Nat. Mater. 8(1), 76–80 (2009). doi:10.1038/nmat2317
  2. X.C. Wang, X.F. Chen, A. Thomas, X.Z. Fu, M. Antonietti, Metal-containing carbon nitride compounds: a new functional organic-metal hybrid material. Adv. Mater. 21(16), 1–4 (2009). doi:10.1002/adma.200802627
  3. Y. Wang, X.C. Wang, M. Antonietti, Polymeric graphitic carbon nitride as a heterogeneous organocatalyst: From photochemistry to multipurpose catalysis to sustainable chemistry. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 51(1), 68–89 (2012). doi:10.1002/anie.201101182
  4. T. Are, F. Anna, G. Frederic, A. Markus, M. Jens-Oliver, S. Robert, M.C. Johan, Graphitic carbon nitride materials: variation of structure and morphology and their use as metal-free catalysts. J. Mater. Chem. 18(41), 4893–4908 (2008). doi:10.1039/b800274f
  5. S.W. Zhang, J.X. Li, M.Y. Zeng, G.X. Zhao, J.Z. Xu, W.P. Hu, X.K. Wang, In situ synthesis of water-soluble magnetic graphitic carbon nitride photocatalyst and its synergistic catalytic performance. ACS App. Mater. Interfaces 5(23), 12735–12743 (2013). doi:10.1021/am404123z
  6. S.C. Yan, Z.S. Li, Z.G. Zou, Photodegradation performance of g-C3N4 fabricated by directly heating melamine. Langmuri 25(17), 10397–10401 (2009). doi:10.1021/la900923z
  7. Y. Wang, J.S. Zhang, X.C. Wang, M. Antonietti, H. Li, Boron- and fluorine-containing mesoporous carbon nitride polymers: metal-free catalysts for cyclohexane oxidation. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 49(19), 3356–3359 (2010). doi:10.1002/anie.201000120
  8. G. Liu, P. Niu, C.H. Sun, S.C. Smith, Z.G. Chen, Q.G. Lu, H.M. Cheng, Unique electronic structure induced high photoreactivity of sulfur-doped graphitic C3N4. JACS 132(33), 11642–11648 (2010). doi:10.1021/ja103798k
  9. S.C. Yan, Z.S. Li, Z.G. Zou, Photodegradation of rhodamine B and methyl orange over boron-doped g-C3N4 under visible light irradiation. Langmuir 26(6), 3894–3901 (2010). doi:10.1021/la904023j
  10. G.G. Zhang, M.W. Zhang, X.X. Ye, X.Q. Qiu, S. Lin, X.C. Wang, Iodine modified carbon nitride semiconductors as visible light photocatalysts for hydrogen evolution. Adv. Mater. 26(5), 805–809 (2014). doi:10.1002/adma.201303611
  11. J. Xu, Y. Wang, Y. Zhu, Nanoporous graphitic carbon nitride with enhanced photocatalytic performance. Langmuir 29(33), 10566–10572 (2013). doi:10.1021/la402268u
  12. H. Yan, Soft-templating synthesis of mesoporous graphitic carbon nitride with enhanced photocatalytic H2 evolution under visible light. Chem. Commun. 48(28), 3430–3432 (2012). doi:10.1039/c2cc00001f
  13. S.S. Park, S.W. Chu, C.F. Xue, D, Y. Zhao, C.S. Ha, Facile synthesis of mesoporous carbon nitrides using the incipient wetness method and the application as hydrogen adsorbent. J. Mater. Chem. 21(29), 10801–10807 (2011). doi:10.1039/c1jm10849b
  14. Y. Wang, X.C. Wang, M. Antonietti, Y.J. Zhang, Facile one-pot synthesis of nanoporous carbon nitride solids by using soft templates. Chem. Sus. Chem. 3(4), 435–439 (2010). doi:10.1002/cssc.200900284
  15. F. Goettmann, A. Fischer, M. Antonietti, A. Thomas, Chemical synthesis of mesoporous carbon nitrides using hard templates and their use as a metal-free catalyst for Friedel–Crafts reaction of benzene. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 45(27), 4467–4471 (2006). doi:10.1002/anie.200600412
  16. N.Y. Cheng, J.Q. Tian, Q. Liu, C.J. Ge, A.H. Qusti, A.M. Asiri, A.O. Al-Youbi, X. Sun, Au-nanoparticle-loaded graphitic carbon nitride nanosheets: green photocatalytic synthesis and application toward the degradation of organic pollutants. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 5(15), 6815–6819 (2013). doi:10.1021/am401802r
  17. S. Subhajyoti, M. Satyabadi, P. Kulamani, Facile synthesis of Au/g-C3N4 nanocomposites: an inorganic/organic hybrid plasmonic photocatalyst with enhanced hydrogen gas evolution under visible-light irradiation. Chem. Cat. Chem. 6, 1453–1462 (2014). doi:10.1002/cctc.201300949
  18. P. Xiao, Y.X. Zhao, T. Wang, Y.Y. Zhan, H.H. Wang, J.L. Li, A. Thomas, J.J. Zhu, Polymeric carbon nitride/mesoporous silica composites as catalyst support for Au and Pt nanoparticles. Chem. Eur. J. 20(10), 2872–2878 (2014). doi:10.1002/chem.201303741
  19. Y.S. Xu, W.D. Zhang, Ag/AgBr-grafted graphite-like carbon nitride with enhanced plasmonic photocatalytic activity under visible light. Chem. Cat. Chem. 5(8), 2343–2351 (2013). doi:10.1002/cctc.201300144
  20. L. Huang, H. Xu, Y. Li, H. Li, X. Cheng, J. Xia, Y. Xu, G. Cai, Visible-light-induced WO3/g- C3N4 composites with enhanced photocatalytic activity. Dalton Trans. 42(24), 8606–8616 (2013). doi:10.1039/c3dt00115f
  21. S. Kumar, T. Surendar, A. Baruah, V. Shanker, Synthesis of a novel and stable g- C3N4-Ag3PO4 hybrid nanocomposite photocatalyst and study of the photocatalytic activity under visible light irradiation. J. Mater. Chem. A 1(17), 5333–5340 (2013). doi:10.1039/c3ta00186e
  22. C. Chang, L. Zhu, S. Wang, X. Chu, L. Yue, Novel mesoporous graphite carbon nitride/BiOI heterojunction for enhancing photocatalytic performance under visible-light irradiation. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 6(7), 5083–5093 (2014). doi:10.1021/am5002597
  23. Y.L. Tian, B.B. Chang, J.L. Lu, J. Fu, F.J. Xi, X.P. Dong, Hydrothermal synthesis of graphitic carbon nitride-Bi2WO6 heterojunctions with enhanced visible light photocatalytic activities. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 5(15), 7079–7085 (2013). doi:10.1021/am4013819
  24. M. Logar, B. Jancar, S. Sturm, D. Suvorov, Weak polyion multilayer-assisted in situ synthesis as a route toward a plasmonic Ag/TiO2 photocatalyst. Langmuir 26(14), 12215–12224 (2010). doi:10.1021/la101124q
  25. X.F. Wang, S.F. Li, Y.Q. Ma, H.G. Yu, J.G. Yu, H2WO4·H2O/Ag/AgCl composite nanoplates: a plasmonic z-scheme visible-light photocatalyst. J. Phys. Chem. C 115(30), 14648–14655 (2011). doi:10.1021/jp2037476
  26. H. Zhang, X.F. Fan, X. Quan, S. Chen, H.T. Yu, Graphene sheets grafted Ag@AgCl hybrid with enhanced plasmonic photocatalytic activity under visible light. Environ. Sci. Technol. 45(13), 5731–5736 (2011). doi:10.1021/es2002919
  27. G. Begum, J. Manna, R.K. Rana, Controlled orientation in a bio-Inspired assembly of Ag/AgCl/ZnO nanostructures enables enhancement in visible-light-induced photocatalytic performance. Chem. Eur. J. 18, 6847–6853 (2012). doi:10.1002/chem.201103760
  28. M.S. Zhu, P.L. Chen, M.H. Liu, Ag/AgBr/graphene oxide nanocomposite synthesized via oil/water and water/oil microemulsions: a comparison of sunlight energized plasmonic photocatalytic activity. Langmuir 28(7), 3385–3390 (2012). doi:10.1021/la204452p
  29. R. Liu, P. Wang, X.F. Wang, H.G. Yu, J.G. Yu, UV- and visible-light photocatalytic activity of simultaneously deposited and doped Ag/Ag(I)-TiO2 photocatalyst. J. Phys. Chem. C 116(33), 17721–17728 (2012). doi:10.1021/jp305774n
  30. C. Hu, T.W. Peng, X.X. Hu, Y.L. Nie, X.F. Zhou, J.H. Qu, H. He, Plasmon-induced photodegradation of toxic pollutants with Ag–AgI/Al2O3 under visible-light irradiation. JACS 132, 857–862 (2010). doi:10.1021/ja907792d
  31. P. Wang, B.B. Huang, Y. Dai, M.H. Whangbo, Plasmonic photocatalysts: harvesting visible light with noble metal nanoparticles. Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. 14(28), 9813–9825 (2012). doi:10.1039/c2cp40823f
  32. X. Yao, X.H. Liu, X.L. Hu, Synthesis of the Ag/AgCl/g-C3N4 composite with high photocatalytic activity under visible light irradiation. Chem. Cat. Chem. 6(12), 3409–3418 (2014). doi:10.1002/cctc.201402487
  33. S.W. Zhang, J.X. Li, X.K. Wang, Y.S. Huang, M.Y. Zeng, J.Z. Xu, In situ ion exchange synthesis of strongly coupled Ag@AgCl/g-C3N4 porous nanosheets as plasmonic photocatalyst for highly efficient visible-light photocatalysis. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 6(24), 22116–22125 (2014). doi:10.1021/am505528c
  34. S.L. Lin, L. Liu, J.S. Hu, Y.H. Liang, W.Q. Cui, Nano Ag@AgBr surface-sensitized Bi2WO6 photocatalyst: oil-in-water synthesis and enhanced photocatalytic degradation. Appl. Sur. Sci. 324, 20–29 (2015). doi:10.1016/j.apsusc.2014.10.101
  35. H. Katsumata, T. Sakai, T. Suzuki, S. Kaneco, Highly efficient photocatalytic activity of g-C3N4/Ag3PO4 hybrid photocatalysts through z-scheme photocatalytic mechanism under visible light. Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 53(19), 8018–8025 (2014). doi:10.1021/ie5012036
  36. X.J. Wang, W.Y. Yang, F.T. Li, Y.B. Xue, R.H. Liu, Y.J. Hao, In Situ microwave-assisted synthesis of porous N–TiO2/g-C3N4 heterojunctions with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic properties. Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 52(48), 17140–17150 (2013). doi:10.1021/ie402820v
  37. H.J. Cheng, J.G. Hou, H.M. Zhu, X.M. Guo, Plasmonic Z-scheme α/β-Bi2O3–Ag–AgCl photocatalyst with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic performance. RSC Adv. 4(78), 41622–41630 (2014). doi:10.1039/C4RA07938H
  38. R.F. Dong, B.Z. Tian, C.Y. Zeng, T.Y. Li, T.T. Wang, J.L. Zhang, Ecofriendly synthesis and photocatalytic activity of uniform cubic Ag@AgCl plasmonic photocatalyst. J. Phys. Chem. C 117(1), 213–220 (2013). doi:10.1021/jp311970k
  39. L.L. Chen, W.X. Zhang, C. Feng, Z.H. Yang, Y.M. Yang, Replacement/etching route to ZnSe nanotube arrays and their enhanced photocatalytic activities. Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 51(11), 4208–4214 (2012). doi:10.1021/ie202044v
  40. F. Dong, L.W. Wu, Y.J. Sun, M. Fu, Z.B. Wu, S.C. Lee, Efficient synthesis of polymeric g-C3N4 layered materials as novel efficient visible light driven photocatalysts. J. Mater. Chem. 21(39), 15171–15174 (2011). doi:10.1039/c1jm12844b
  41. Y.X. Tang, Z.J. Gui, C. Xing, A. Li, P.D. Kanhere et al., Efficient Ag@AgCl cubic cage photocatalysts profit from ultrafast plasmon-induced electron transfer processes. Adv. Fun. Mater. 23(23), 2932–2940 (2013). doi:10.1002/adfm.201203379
  42. J.G. Hou, Z. Wang, C. Yang, W.L. Zhou, S.Q. Jiao, H.M. Zhu, Hierarchically plasmonic Z-Scheme photocatalyst of Ag/AgCl nanocrystals decorated mesoporous single-crystalline metastable Bi20TiO32 nanosheets. J. Phys. Chem. C 117(10), 5132–5141 (2013). doi:10.1021/jp311996r
  43. Z.Y. Wang, W. Guan, Y.J. Sun, F. Dong, Y. Zhou, W.K. Ho, Water-assisted production of honeycomb-like g-C3N4 with ultralong carrier lifetime and outstanding photocatalytic activity. Nanoscale 7, 2471–2479 (2015). doi:10.1039/C4NR05732E
Read More
Author biographies are not available.
Download this PDF file
PDF
Statistic
Read Counter : 3289 Download : 2499