Facile synthesis of heterostructured g-C3N4/Ag -TiO2 photocatalysts with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic performance

Chonnipha TANGWONGPUTTI; Prasert REUBROYCHAROEN; Pornapa SUJARIDWORAKUN

doi:10.55713/jmmm.v32i1.1246

Authors

Chonnipha TANGWONGPUTTI Department of Materials Science, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
Prasert REUBROYCHAROEN Department of Chemical Technology, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
Pornapa SUJARIDWORAKUN Center of Excellence on Petrochemical and Materials Technology, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.55713/jmmm.v32i1.1246

Keywords:

g-C3N4/Ag-TiO2, Surface plasmon resonance, Heterojunction, Visible light

Abstract

In this study, the g-C₃N₄/Ag-TiO₂ composite photocatalysts were prepared to enhance the efficient utilization of solar energy. The g-C₃N₄ was synthesized by facile heat treatment of urea at 600℃ for 4 h, and 0.05 wt% to 3 wt% Ag-TiO₂ were obtained through the chemical reduction method. The composite photocatalysts were prepared by mixing the g-C₃N₄ and Ag-TiO₂ with a weight ratio of 50:50 at room temperature. The photocatalytic efficiency was carried out by using 0.05 g of photocatalysts with 10 mg·L^-1 of rhodamine B 120 mL under 60 min of visible light irradiation. The experimental results indicated that a sample with 0.1 wt% Ag-TiO₂ could degrade rhodamine B up to 21.21%. The g-C₃N₄/(0.1 wt% Ag-TiO₂) and g-C₃N₄ showed rhodamine B degradation efficiency up to 100%, which was 10.4 times and 4.7 times of pure TiO₂ and 0.1 wt% Ag-TiO₂, respectively. It can be suggested that the Ag deposited on TiO₂ played an important role in the absorption capability under the visible light through the surface plasmon resonance effect. In addition, heterojunction between g-C₃N₄ and TiO₂ could reduce the recombination of electron-hole pairs.

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