Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C 3 N 4 ) nanotubes were produced by using salicylic acid-mediated melamine successfully. The obtained long g-C 3 N 4 nanotube possesses a large specific surface area and a parallel channel structure. Salicylic acid and its decomposition products present in g-C 3 N 4 influenced its formation process and inhibited the crystal growth of g-C 3 N 4 . A possible mechanism is proposed: Salicylic acid and its decomposition products facilitated the formation of g-C 3 N 4 nanosheet, and then the nanosheet coiled to form a nanotube. The tube-like structure facilitates the increase in photocatalytic activities, which are 6.7 and 2.4 times that of pristine g-C 3 N 4 in 2-propanol decomposition and CO 2 photoreduction, respectively. The enhanced photocatalytic performance was contributed by the large specific surface area, better photogenerated charge carrier transmission, and the porous nanotube structure. This research provides an easy synthetic method for the large-scale production of g-C 3 N 4 nanotubes applied in the photocatalytic field.
Due to their ease of preparation, low cost and environmentally-friendly characteristics, zinc-type photocatalysts have attracted a lot of interest with regards to the photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants. In this study, K+ doped ZnO (KZO) microcrystals were prepared from zinc acetate dehydrate and potassium hydroxide. X-ray diffraction analysis revealed the structure of the hexagonal wurtzite and the substitution of potassium ions in zinc oxide. A scanning electron microscope image showed the nanorod microstructure of prepared KZO crystallites. UV–visible analysis showed that the light absorption of KZO crystals expanded to the visible region and possessed a narrower band gap. In addition, the photocatalytic performance of KZO nanoparticles was evaluated. The results show that KZO possesses enhanced activity which is 3.45 times that of pure ZnO. This high performance in the photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants can be ascribed to the band gap reduction, large surface area and improved transmission of charge carriers.
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