Hydrogenated black TiO 2 is receiving everincreasing attention, primarily due to its ability to capture low-energy photons in the solar spectrum and its highly efficient redox reactivity for solar-driven water splitting. However, in-depth physical insight into the redox reactivity is still missing. In this work, we conducted a density functional theory study with Hubbard U correction (DFT+U) based on the model obtained from spectroscopic and aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy (AC-STEM) characterizations to reveal the synergy among H heteroatoms located at different surface sites where the six-coordinated Ti (Ti 6C ) atom is converted from an inert trapping site to a site for the interchange of photoexcited electrons. This indepth understanding may be applicable to the rational design of highly efficient solar-light-harvesting catalysts.

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Upconversion heterojunction synergistic effect for photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants.

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To improve the photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of photocatalysts, the doping strategy through covalent functionalization is often adopted to adjust material electronic structures. By contrast, this work demonstrates that the noncovalent interaction in the case of iodinated graphitic carbon nitride (g‐CN) film can also enhance the PEC performance. Through a facile synthesis method of rapid thermal vapor condensation (RTVC), the prepared iodinated g‐CN film shows a significantly improved photocurrent density (38.9 µA cm−2), three times that of pure g‐CN film (13.0 µA cm−2) at 1.23 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode. Computations reveal that the noncovalent attachment of iodine anion (I−) on g‐CN plays a crucial role in modulating the bandgap states and broadening of the visible‐light absorption range as well as the charge carrier separation with the photo‐induced hole confined to I− and electron to g‐CN film. The fully filled valence orbitals (4d105s25p6) of I− determine its noncovalent attachment on the g‐CN film and so do the iodine species of I3−, I5−, etc. This work offers a favorable synthesis method to achieve efficient doping through noncovalent charge transfer between thin film and certain dopants and provides a useful modification strategy for the establishment of multi‐channel transportation of charge carriers in general photocatalysts.

The atomically dispersed Fe-N-C catalyst has been synthesized and enables high power out performance in microbial fuel cells (MFCs). The influence of Fe doping on the electronic properties of N-doped...

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN), as an orderly structured polymer derivative, has been widely concerned for its photocatalytic ability due to its metal-free nature and unique properties. However, the photoelectrochemical (PEC) application of g-CN is still hindered by the difficulty of forming high-quality films with good uniformity and crystallinity. Herein, we report the use of a rapid thermal vapor condensation (RTVC) method for growing g-CN films with improved PEC activity. The polycondensation reactions of precursor melamine molecules under the optimized temperature 600 °C and condensation time 20 min resulted in better crystallinity of g-CN films. Remarkably, the growth of g-CN film based on the coalescence of unambiguous hexagonal nanosheets was observed, as corroborated by scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. This RTVC method offers a fast and easy strategy for improving the crystallinity of g-CN films through controlling the thermal dynamics and kinetics of film growth from temperature and time.