Constructing a coplanar heterojunction through enhanced π-π conjugation in g-C3N4 for efficient solar-driven water splitting

Adjusting the electronic structure of graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) photocatalyst through π-π conjugation is an effective method to achieve efficient photogenerated carrier separation. One key challenge of π-π conjugation control is to tune the degree of such conjugation without destroying the g-C3N4 structure. Herein we report a conceptual design that achieves a coplanar heterojunction by enhancing the π-π conjugation via the doping of crystalline g-C3N4 using a conjugated double bond ring molecule, 1,3,5-benzenetriol, during calcination process. The selection of the dopant enables the facile creation of a unique coplanar heterojunction which not only retains the pristine network structure of g-C3N4, but remarkably promotes separation and transfer of photogenerated carriers through the enhanced π-conjugated endogenous electric field. As a result, the new g-C3N4 photocatalyst efficiently photocatalytically produces hydrogen from water under visible light irradiation with a high H2 production rate up to 94.94 µmol/h, and a notable external quantum efficiency of 16.4% at 420 nm.