Recent development in the structural modification of graphitic carbon nitride for sustainable photocatalysis: Advances, challenges and opportunities

• Approaches to improve the photocatalytic performance of g-C 3 N 4 . • Structural modification of g-C 3 N 4. • Photocatalyst active in the near-infrared region hybrid catalyst need to be commissioned. Today photocatalysis has been proved a vital technology to counter energy and environmental related issues. Immense research is going on to formulate a low cost, light-efficient stable photocatalyst. In this context, graphitic carbon nitride (g-C 3 N 4 ), a kind of polymeric material with a mild bandgap of 2.7 eV, has shown promising results for various applications in the field of photocatalysis. Its two-dimensional structure contains one sigma and two pi bonds with a multi-layered assembly and weak interlayered van der Waals interaction. Besides its multifunctional properties, a high charge carrier recombination rate results in low quantum efficiency, limiting its photocatalytic application. Hence, customizing its photocatalytic activity has emerged as an extensive research area. To this prospect, various approaches such as concurrence with semiconductors and noble metals, doping, deploying morphology and microstructure, etc., have been implemented to modify its structure. This paper contributes a detailed review of various methodologies implemented in this regard.