Facile synthesis of Br-doped g-C3N4 nanosheets via one-step exfoliation using ammonium bromide for photodegradation of oxytetracycline antibiotics

A critical review on non-metal doped g-C3N4 based photocatalyst for organic pollutant remediation with sustainability assessment by life cycle analysis

Photocatalysis is recognized to be one of the most promising ways to address energy and environmental issues by utilizing visible light. Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4), with a moderate band gap (∼2.7 eV) has been the flashpoint in environmental photocatalysis as it can work better under visible light, can be synthesized by a facile synthesis process using low-cost materials, thermally and chemically stable. Still the photocatalytic performance of g-C3N4 is not satisfactory because of certain limitations such as insufficient visible light absorption capacity, low electron-hole separation efficiency, high recombination rate, poor surface area. Introduction of doping, band structure engineering, defecting and designing of heterojunction, composites etc. were investigated to amplify its applications. Among all these modifications, elemental doping is a suitable and successful alternative for the enhancement of the photocatalytic activity by changing the optical and electronic properties. This review emphasizes on advancement and trends of elemental doping and its application on photocatalytic organic pollutant remediation in aqueous medium. The fundamental photocatalytic activity of heterogeneous photocatalysis and specifically g-C3N4-based photocatalysis have been discussed. The benfits of non-metal doping, enhanced photocatalytic performance by doping element, mechanism invloved in doping, advantages of co-doping has been explained. Mono, bi, and tri non-metal doped g-C3N4 and their application for the removal of organic pollutants from water medium by visible light photocatalysis has been summerized. Life cycle assessment (LCA) of photocatalytic system has been highlighted. Future research should focus on the large-scale application of the photocatalysis process considering the economic aspects. A rigorous life cycle assessment for deploying the non-metal doped g-C3N4-based photocatalysis technology for successful commercial application is recommended.

Efficient removal of oxytetracycline antibiotic from aqueous media using UV/g-C3N4/Fe3O4 photocatalytic process

Residual pharmaceuticals in the environment are a class of emerging pollutants that endanger human health. Tetracycline's family, including oxytetracycline (OTC), are known as one of the most produced and consumed antibiotics worldwide. The g-C3N4/Fe3O4 nanocomposite with high level of catalytic efficiency features suitable performance in water/wastewater treatment. Therefore, in the present study, this nanocomposite was applied to remove the oxytetracycline from the aqueous environment. In this research study, g-C3N4/Fe3O4 nanocomposite (serving as catalyst) was initially synthesized by a simple hydrothermal method. The effect of key operating parameters such as initial solution pH, dose of catalyst, contact time and initial concentration of OTC in aqueous solutions was investigated under UV irradiation. In addition, COD and TOC tests, the kinetics and the effect of radical scavengers on the applied photocatalytic process were all evaluated. The maximum removal efficiency of OTC (99.8 %) was achieved under the following conditions: neutral solution pH 7; catalyst dose, 0.7 g/L; and an initial OTC concentration of 5 mg/L. The data showed that the kinetics of the reaction followed the first-order model with R2 of 0.9755. The respective COD and TOC efficiency values for the applied photocatalytic process were determined to be 87 and 59 %, respectively. In addition, the lowest removal efficiency of OTC was observed in the presence of tert-butanol radical scavengers, and OH radicals played a main role. The UV/g-C3N4/Fe3O4 photocatalytic process proved to be highly efficient for the removal of OTC antibiotic and could be potentially applied for the removal of other pollutants from aqueous solutions.

Chemical-Vapor-Deposition-Synthesized Two-Dimensional Non-Stoichiometric Copper Selenide (β-Cu2-xSe) for Ultra-Fast Tetracycline Hydrochloride Degradation under Solar Light

The high concentration of antibiotics in aquatic environments is a serious environmental issue. In response, researchers have explored photocatalytic degradation as a potential solution. Through chemical vapor deposition (CVD), we synthesized copper selenide (β-Cu2-xSe) and found it an effective catalyst for degrading tetracycline hydrochloride (TC-HCl). The catalyst demonstrated an impressive degradation efficiency of approximately 98% and a reaction rate constant of 3.14 × 10-2 min-1. Its layered structure, which exposes reactive sites, contributes to excellent stability, interfacial charge transfer efficiency, and visible light absorption capacity. Our investigations confirmed that the principal active species produced by the catalyst comprises O2- radicals, which we verified through trapping experiments and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR). We also verified the TC-HCl degradation mechanism using high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Our results provide valuable insights into developing the β-Cu2-xSe catalyst using CVD and its potential applications in environmental remediation.

Decade Milestone Advancement of Defect-Engineered g-C3N4 for Solar Catalytic Applications

Over the past decade, graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) has emerged as a universal photocatalyst toward various sustainable carbo-neutral technologies. Despite solar applications discrepancy, g-C3N4 is still confronted with a general fatal issue of insufficient supply of thermodynamically active photocarriers due to its inferior solar harvesting ability and sluggish charge transfer dynamics. Fortunately, this could be significantly alleviated by the "all-in-one" defect engineering strategy, which enables a simultaneous amelioration of both textural uniqueness and intrinsic electronic band structures. To this end, we have summarized an unprecedently comprehensive discussion on defect controls including the vacancy/non-metallic dopant creation with optimized electronic band structure and electronic density, metallic doping with ultra-active coordinated environment (M-Nx, M-C2N2, M-O bonding), functional group grafting with optimized band structure, and promoted crystallinity with extended conjugation π system with weakened interlayered van der Waals interaction. Among them, the defect states induced by various defect types such as N vacancy, P/S/halogen dopants, and cyano group in boosting solar harvesting and accelerating photocarrier transfer have also been emphasized. More importantly, the shallow defect traps identified by femtosecond transient absorption spectra (fs-TAS) have also been highlighted. It is believed that this review would pave the way for future readers with a unique insight into a more precise defective g-C3N4 "customization", motivating more profound thinking and flourishing research outputs on g-C3N4-based photocatalysis.

Preparation of high-efficiency titanium ion immobilized magnetic graphite nitride nanocomposite for phosphopeptide enrichment

BACKGROUND

Protein phosphorylation has been implicated in life processes including molecular interaction, protein structure transformation, and malignant disease. An in-depth study of protein phosphorylation may provide vital information for the discovery of early biomarkers. Mass spectrometry (MS)-based techniques have become an important method for phosphopeptide identification. Nevertheless, direct detection remains challenging because of the low ionization efficiency of phosphopeptides and serious interference from non-phosphopeptides. There is a great need for an efficient enrichment strategy to analyze protein phosphorylation prior to MS analysis.

RESULTS

In this study, a novel nanocomposite was prepared by introducing titanium ions into two-dimensional magnetic graphite nitride. The nanocomposite was combined with immobilized metal ion affinity chromatography (IMAC) and anion-exchange chromatography mechanisms for phosphoproteome research. The nanocomposite had the advantages of a large specific surface (412.9 m2 g-1), positive electricity (175.44 mV), and excellent magnetic property (35.7 emu g-1). Moreover, it presented satisfactory selectivity (α-casein:β-casein:bovine serum albumin = 1:1:5000), a low detection limit (0.02 fmol), great recyclability (10 cycles), and high recovery (92.8%). The nanocomposite demonstrated great practicability for phosphopeptides from non-fat milk, human serum, and saliva. Further, the nanocomposite was applied to enrich phosphopeptides from a more complicated specimen, A549 cell lysate. A total of 890 phosphopeptides mapping to 564 phosphoproteins were successfully detected with nano LC-MS.

SIGNIFICANCE

We successfully designed and developed an efficient analysis platform for phosphopeptides, which includes protein digestion, phosphopeptide enrichment, and MS detection. The MS-based enrichment platform was further used to analyze phosphopeptides from complicated bio-samples. This work paves the way for the design and preparation of graphite nitride-based IMAC materials for phosphoproteome analysis.

Photocatalytic degradation of metronidazole and oxytetracycline by novel l-Arginine (C, N codoped)-TiO2/g-C3N4: RSM optimization, photodegradation mechanism, biodegradability evaluation

Removal of Metronidazole (MNZ) and Oxytetracycline (OTC) from wastewater by the prepared (C, N codoped)-TiO₂/g-C₃N₄ (Graphitic carbon nitride) was examined. l-Arginine (C, N codoped)-TiO₂ and l-Arginine (C, N codoped)-TiO₂/g-C₃N₄ photocatalysts were successfully synthesized through the sol-gel method, and optimal ratio of l-arginine:TiO₂, as well as l-arginine/TiO₂:g-C₃N₄, was determined by a kinetic study of photodegradation process. The maximum photocatalytic removal rate (0.065 min^-1 for MNZ removal) was observed using 1% l-Arginine-TiO₂/g-C₃N₄ (1:1) under visible light illumination, 2.2 and 6.5 times greater than those of 1% l-Arginine-TiO₂ and pure TiO₂, respectively. l-Arginine (1%)-TiO₂/g-C₃N₄ (1:1) (co-doped-TCN) was investigated using X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX), Photo-luminescence (PL), and Differential Reflectance Spectroscopy (DRS) as the best-performing photocatalyst. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to study the effect of co-doped-TCN dosage (0.5-1.0 g/L), pH of simulated wastewater (4-10), initial concentration of MNZ and OTC (50-100 mg/L), and irradiation time (30-90 min for MNZ and 20-40 min for OTC) on removal efficiency of the antibiotics. Also, their optimum values were determined by RSM. The treated pharmaceutical wastewater showed high biodegradability features with 5-day biological oxygen demand/chemical oxygen demand (BOD₅/COD) of 0.51 and 0.46 after 40 and 100 min reaction for OTC and MNZ, respectively. The order of reactive species responsible for the photodegradation of pollutants was •O₂^─> •OH > h⁺>¹O₂. The effect of inorganic anions showed that all anions decreased the removal efficiency of both antibiotics in order of NO₃^─> Cl^─ >SO₄^2─>HPO₄^2─ >HCO₃^─ for MNZ and NO₃^─> SO₄^2─ > Cl^─ >HPO₄^2─ >HCO₃^─ for OTC. Also, introducing different oxidants improved the photocatalytic removal efficiency with the order of H₂O₂>K₂S₂O₈> KBrO₃.

Doped graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) catalysts for efficient photodegradation of tetracycline antibiotics in aquatic environments

Tetracyclines (TCs) antibiotics are very common and often used in both human and veterinary medicines. More than 75% of TCs are excreted in an active condition and released into the environment, posing a risk to the ecosystem and human health. Residual antibiotics are in global water bodies, causing antibiotic resistance and genotoxicity in humans and aquatic organisms. The ever-increasing number of multi-resistant bacteria caused by the widespread use of antibiotics in the environment has sparked a renewed interest in developing more sustainable antibiotic degradation processes. In this regard, photodegradation technique provides a promising solution to resolve this growing issue, paving the way for complete antibiotic degradation with the generation of non-toxic by-products. As a fascinating activity towards visible light range shown by semiconductor, graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) has a medium bandgap, non-toxicity, chemically stable complex, and thermally great strength. Recent studies have concentrated on the performance of g-C₃N₄ as a photocatalyst for treating wastewater. Pure g-C₃N₄ exhibits limited photocatalytic activity due to insufficient sunlight usage, small surface area, and a high rate of recombination of electron and hole ([Formula: see text] & [Formula: see text]) pairs created in photocatalytic activity. Doping of g-C₃N₄ is a very effective method for improving the activity as element doped g-C₃N₄ shows excellent bandgap and electronic structure. Doping significantly broadens the light-responsive range and reduces recombination of e^- & h⁺ pairs. Under above context, this review provides a systematic and comprehensive outlook of designing doped g-C₃N₄ as well as efficiency for TCs degradation in aquatic environment.

Noble metal-free doped graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) for efficient photodegradation of antibiotics: progress, limitations, and future directions

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) is well recognised as one of the most promising materials for photocatalytic activities such as environmental remediation via organic pollution elimination. New methods of nanoscale structure design introduce tunable electrical characteristics and broaden their use as visible light-induced photocatalysts. This paper summarises the most recent developments in the design of g-C₃N₄ with element doping. Various methods of introducing metal and nonmetal elements into g-C₃N₄ have been investigated in order to simultaneously tune the material's textural and electronic properties to improve its response to the entire visible light range, facilitate charge separation, and extend charge carrier lifetime. The degradation of antibiotics is one of the application domains of such doped g-C₃N₄. We expect that this research will provide fresh insights into clear design methods for efficient photocatalysts that will solve environmental challenges in a sustainable manner. Finally, the problems and potential associated with g-C₃N₄-based nanomaterials are discussed. This review is expected to encourage the ongoing development of g-C₃N₄-based materials for greater efficiency in photocatalytic antibiotic degradation.

Integrated Adsorption-Photocatalytic Decontamination of Oxytetracycline from Wastewater Using S-Doped TiO2/WS2/Calcium Alginate Beads

Integrated wastewater treatment processes are needed due to the inefficient removal of emerging pharmaceuticals by single methods. Herein, an adsorbent-photocatalyst integrated material was fabricated by coupling calcium alginate with sulfur-doped TiO2/tungsten disulfide (S-TiO2/WS2/alginate beads) for the removal of oxytetracycline (OTC) from aqueous solution by an integrated adsorption-photocatalysis process. The semiconductor S-TiO2/WS2 hybrid photocatalyst was synthesized with a hydrothermal method, while the integrated adsorbent-photocatalyst S-TiO2/WS2/alginate beads were synthesized by blending S-TiO2/WS2 with sodium alginate using calcium chloride as a precipitating agent. The physicochemical characteristics of S-TiO2/WS2/alginate beads were analyzed using X-ray diffraction , scanning electron microscopy, elemental mapping, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and photoluminescence spectroscopy. The integrated adsorption-photocatalysis process showed enhanced removal from 92.5 to 72%, with a rise in the OTC concentration from 10 to 75 mg/L respectively. The results demonstrated that the adsorption of OTC onto S-TiO2/WS2/alginate beads followed the Elovich kinetic model and Redlich–Peterson isotherm models. The formations of H-bonds, cation bridge bonding, and n-π electron donor-acceptor forces were involved in the adsorption of OCT onto S-TiO2/WS2/alginate beads. In the integrated adsorption-photocatalysis, surface-adsorbed OTC molecules were readily decomposed by the photogenerated active radical species (h⁺, O2•−, and HO•). The persulfate addition to the OTC solution further increased the photocatalysis efficacy due to the formation of additional oxidizing species (SO4•⁻, SO4⁻). Moreover, S-TiO2/WS2/alginate beads showed favorable efficiency and sustainability in OTC removal, approaching 78.6% after five cycles. This integrated adsorption-photocatalysis process offered significant insight into improving efficiency and reusability in water treatment.

Ag-Modified ZnO for Degradation of Oxytetracycline Antibiotic and Reactive Red Azo Dye

It is known that low electron-hole separation efficiency is the major disadvantage influencing low photoactivity of the UV-active ZnO photocatalyst. To solve this drawback, the excellent fabrication technique has been used to disperse silver metal on ZnO surface. In this study, an addition of silver content up to 15 wt% was carried out. The 5Ag-ZnO sample, comprising 5 wt% of silver metal, displayed a hexagonal wurtzite structure, and a band gap of 3.00 eV, with high sunlight-active photocatalytic performance of 99-100% and low photo-corrosion problem. The complete degradation of oxytetracycline (OTC) antibiotic and reactive red dye 141 (RR141) dye under natural sunlight was achieved. The highest rate constant of 0.061 min-1 was detected. The enhancement of the performance is mainly due to lowering of the electron-hole recombination rate. Dispersion of silver on ZnO causes the generation of the Schottky barrier at the interface between Ag and ZnO, so that improvement of quantum efficiency and enhancement of the resultant photoactivity could be expected. Furthermore, good distribution of metallic silver also causes a red shift in absorption of light toward the visible spectrum. This is strongly attributed to the surface plasmon resonance effect, which occurred after successful decoration of the noble metal on ZnO. The photocatalyst, with great structural stability, still maintains high photocatalytic efficiency even after five times of use, implying its excellent cycling ability. The present finding offers a new road to generate a silver decorated ZnO photocatalyst for the complete removal of dye and antibiotics contaminated in the environment.

Boosting the photocatalytic activation of molecular oxygen and photodegradation of tetracycline: The role of interfacial synergistic effect of cocatalyst and dopants

Utilizing reactive oxygen species (ROS), which are generated by the activation of molecular oxygen (O₂) in oxidation reaction, is a promising method for pollutant degradation. However, it is limited by the commonly low efficiency of O₂ activation and carrier separation. Herein, as a model system, Ag cocatalyst and Cl doping modified g-C₃N₄ (Ag/Cl-CN) was constructed to improve the ability of O₂ activation. Results showed that Ag/Cl-CN could effectively convert more O₂ into ROS than pristine g-C₃N₄ (CN), and individually decorated CN (Ag-CN and Cl-CN). A series of experiments and DFT calculations revealed that the deposition of Ag could promote charge separation resulting in more charges accumulated around O₂ and the introduction of Cl led to a stronger adsorption capacity for O₂. Therefore, due to the synergistic effect of Ag cocatalyst and Cl dopant, Ag/Cl-CN generated higher concentrations of O₂^- and displayed much better activity for photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline (TC) than CN, Ag-CN and Cl-CN.

N-TiO2-δ/g-C3N4 Dual Photocatalysts for Efficient Oxytetracycline Hydrochloride Photodegradation and CO2 Photoreduction

A series of $x\%$ (wt) N-TiO2-δ/g-C3N4 composites was synthesized by calcination and hydrothermal methods (labeled $x$ TiCN, $x$ : 5, 10, and 15). All composites were characterized by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The photocatalytic activity of these composites was evaluated through oxytetracycline hydrochloride (denoted as OTC) photodegradation and CO2 photoreduction. The $x$ TiCN composites exhibited higher OTC photodegradation than bulk g-C3N4. 10TiCN was slightly more active than 5TiCN and 15TiCN, with a photodegradation yield of 97% after 5 h of light irradiation and constant rate of 0.647 h-1. For CO2 photoreduction, it was observed that 5TiCN exhibited the highest activity among the synthesized composites, with 7.0 ppm CH4 formed. This CH4 concentration was 7.8 times higher than the concentration formed by bulk g-C3N4 (0.9 ppm). A $Z$ -scheme mechanism was proposed to explain the enhanced photocatalysis by $x\%$ (wt) N-TiO2-δ/g-C3N4 composites. The $Z$ -scheme structure increased redox ability, caused better separation of photogenerated electron-hole pairs, and broadened the light absorption zone of the photocatalysts.

Applications of Heterogeneous Photocatalysis to the Degradation of Oxytetracycline in Water: A Review

Photocatalytic processes are being studied extensively as potential advanced wastewater treatments for the removal of pharmaceuticals, pesticides and other recalcitrant micropollutants from the effluents of conventional wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Oxytetracycline (OTC) is a widespread antibiotic which is frequently detected in surface water bodies as a recalcitrant and persistent micropollutant. This review provides an update on advances in heterogeneous photocatalysis for the degradation of OTC in water under UV light, sunlight and visible-light irradiation. Photocatalysts based on pure semiconducting oxides are rarely used, due to the problem of rapid recombination of electron–hole pairs. To overcome this issue, a good strategy could be the coupling of two different semiconducting compounds with different conduction and valence bands. Several methods are described to enhance the performances of catalysts, such as doping of the oxide with metal and/or non-metal elements, surface functionalization, composites and nano-heterojunction. Furthermore, a discussion on non-oxidic photocatalysts is briefly provided, focusing on the application of graphene-based nanocomposites for the effective treatment of OTC.

Two-dimensional biomaterials: material science, biological effect and biomedical engineering applications

To date, nanotechnology has increasingly been identified as a promising and efficient means to address a number of challenges associated with public health. In the past decade, two-dimensional (2D) biomaterials, as a unique nanoplatform with planar topology, have attracted explosive interest in various fields such as biomedicine due to their unique morphology, physicochemical properties and biological effect. Motivated by the progress of graphene in biomedicine, dozens of types of ultrathin 2D biomaterials have found versatile bio-applications, including biosensing, biomedical imaging, delivery of therapeutic agents, cancer theranostics, tissue engineering, as well as others. The effective utilization of 2D biomaterials stems from the in-depth knowledge of structure-property-bioactivity-biosafety-application-performance relationships. A comprehensive summary of 2D biomaterials for biomedicine is still lacking. In this comprehensive review, we aim to concentrate on the state-of-the-art 2D biomaterials with a particular focus on their versatile biomedical applications. In particular, we discuss the design, fabrication and functionalization of 2D biomaterials used for diverse biomedical applications based on the up-to-date progress. Furthermore, the interactions between 2D biomaterials and biological systems on the spatial-temporal scale are highlighted, which will deepen the understanding of the underlying action mechanism of 2D biomaterials aiding their design with improved functionalities. Finally, taking the bench-to-bedside as a focus, we conclude this review by proposing the current crucial issues/challenges and presenting the future development directions to advance the clinical translation of these emerging 2D biomaterials.

Element-doped graphitic carbon nitride: confirmation of doped elements and applications

Doping is widely reported as an efficient strategy to enhance the performance of graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN). In the study of element-doped g-CN, the characterization of doped elements is an indispensable requirement, as well as a huge challenge. In this review, we summarize some useful characterization methods which can confirm the existence and chemical states of doped elements. The advantages and shortcomings of these characterization methods are discussed in detail. Various applications of element-doped g-CN and the function of doped elements are also introduced. Overall, this review article aims to provide helpful information for the research of element-doped g-CN.

Halogen Functionalization in the 2D Material Flatland: Strategies, Properties, and Applications

Given the electronegativity and bonding environment of halogen elements, halogenation (i.e., fluorination, chlorination, bromination, and iodination) serves as a versatile strategy for chemical modifications of materials. The combination of halogens and 2D materials has triggered extensive interests since the first report on graphene fluorination in 2008. Subsequently, scholars consistently conduct pre-, in-process, or posthalogenation modifications of emerging 2D materials to achieve desired properties and broad device applications. They also continuously explore the role of halogens in 2D material functionalization. The multiple advantages introduced by halogen decoration make 2D materials outstanding from each subclass. In this review, an overall retrospect is provided on the research advances in the area of 2D material halogenation, including experimental halogenation strategies, halogen-triggered novel physics and properties, and advanced applications across the studied objects. Future research directions in this area are also proposed.

Boosting of photocatalytic hydrogen evolution via chlorine doping of polymeric carbon nitride

Chlorine is found to be a suitable element for the modification of polymeric carbon nitride properties towards an efficient visible-light photocatalytic activity. In this study, chlorine-doped polymeric carbon nitride (Cl-PCN) has been examined as a photocatalyst in the hydrogen evolution reaction. The following aspects were found to enhance the photocatalytic efficiency of Cl-PCN: (i) unique location of Cl atoms at the interlayers of PCN instead of on its π-conjugated planes, (ii) slight bandgap narrowing, (iii) lower recombination rate of the electron-hole pairs, (iv) improved photogenerated charge transport and separation, and (v) higher reducing ability of the photogenerated electrons. The above factors affected the 4.4-fold enhancement of the photocatalytic efficiency in hydrogen evolution in comparison to the pristine catalyst.

The construction of NiFeSx/g-C3N4 composites with high photocatalytic activity towards the degradation of refractory pollutants

In this work, a novel NiFe layered double hydroxide-derived sulfide (NiFeSx)-modified g-C3N4 nanosheet photocatalyst (NiFeSx/g-C3N4) was synthesized, and its morphology, structure and visible light absorption capacity were simultaneously characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM, FT-IR, XPS, UV-Vis DRS, PL techniques and EIS Nyquist plots. Furthermore, it was discovered that at an optimum mass ratio of 3% (NiFeSx to g-C3N4), 3% NiFeSx/g-C3N4 composites exhibited the best degradation efficiency toward tetracycline hydrochloride refractory pollutants. The degradation rate of tetracycline hydrochloride by 3% NiFeSx/g-C3N4 composites was 92.54% under 70 min of visible light illumination, which was about 2.61 times higher than that of pure g-C3N4. The improved degradation activity may be attributed to the synergistic effect between the two constituents of as-synthesized composites, and the formed heterojunction reduced the efficiency of photogenerated carriers. More importantly, this work also gives some inspiration to synthesize some similar photocatalysts for a targeted environmental remediation.

Boosting charge carrier separation efficiency by constructing an intramolecular DA system towards efficient photoreduction of CO2

The charge carrier excitation–recombination process between the donor and acceptor, and the photocatalytic reduction of CO₂ to CO over CN based DA composites.