Bio-templated 3D porous graphitic carbon nitride hybrid aerogel with enhanced charge carrier separation for efficient removal of hazardous organic pollutants

Houjuan Qi; Xiaodi Ji; Cai Shi; Rongxiu Ma; Zhanhua Huang; Minghui Guo; Jian Li; Zhanhu Guo

doi:10.1016/j.jcis.2019.08.072

Bio-templated 3D porous graphitic carbon nitride hybrid aerogel with enhanced charge carrier separation for efficient removal of hazardous organic pollutants

J Colloid Interface Sci. 2019 Nov 15:556:366-375. doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2019.08.072. Epub 2019 Aug 21.

Authors

Houjuan Qi¹, Xiaodi Ji², Cai Shi¹, Rongxiu Ma¹, Zhanhua Huang³, Minghui Guo¹, Jian Li¹, Zhanhu Guo⁴

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Bio-based Material Science and Technology of Ministry of Education, College of Material Science and Engineering, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China.
² College of Forestry, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shanxi, China.
³ Key Laboratory of Bio-based Material Science and Technology of Ministry of Education, College of Material Science and Engineering, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China. Electronic address: huangzh1975@163.com.
⁴ Integrated Composites Laboratory (ICL), Department of Chemical and Bimolecular Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, United States. Electronic address: zguo10@utk.edu.

PMID: 31470351
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2019.08.072

Abstract

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) hybrid aerogels (GHAs) with different proportions of g-C₃N₄ were prepared using g-C₃N₄, carboxymethyl cellulose, and β-cyclodextrin. GHAs have demonstrated high porosity, large specific surface area, rich three-dimensional network structure. GHAs demonstrated an excellent synergistic effect on the photocatalytic and adsorptive properties. Especially, GHA1 (the ratio of g-C₃N₄ and aerogel component was 1:1) exhibited a good synergy in photodegradation and adsorption, with a Rhodamine B (Rh B) removal up to 97.99% in 90 min. In five cycling experiments, the GHA1 showed a good long-term stability. The aerogels can be easily isolated and maintains its excellent photocatalytic properties. Compared to pure g-C₃N₄, GHA1 has a stronger photocurrent, which is due to the transmission of light to the surface of the catalyst, promoted photo-generated electron-hole pairs, and inhibited recombination of electros and holes. Finally, mechanistic studies reveal that the superoxide radicals (O^2-) are the main active groups in the photocatalytic degradation process. This work provides a useful perspective in design and fabrication of hybrid aerogel composites with an enhanced photocatalytic activity.

Keywords: Organic pollutants; Photodegradation; g-C(3)N(4) hybrid aerogel.