Oxygen-doped g-C3N4 with pyridine ring (POCN) was synthesized by easily thermal polymerization of urea, pyridine solution, and ammonium acetate to improve photocatalytic hydrogen production. The experimental results indicate that pyridine was incorporated into the tri-s-triazine structure of g-C3N4. The O atoms were modified to g-C3N4 by replacing the N atoms (C-N=C) of the triazine ring. The photocatalytic activity for the hydrogen production rate of optimized POCN was 1018 µmol g-1 h-1, approximately 30 times higher than that of bulk g-C3N4 (CN) under visible light irradiation (λ > 420 nm). The high stability of POCN was confirmed through cycling tests for 30-h, XRD patterns, and SEM images. The pyridine incorporation can significantly enhance surface charge transfer efficiency. The oxygen modification can greatly promote visible light absorption (600 nm) and photogenerated electron-hole pairs separation. This work provides a suitable strategy to synthesize g-C3N4 based on metal-free photocatalysts for highly efficient photocatalytic hydrogen generation performance.
Keywords: Photocatalyst; graphitic carbon nitride; hydrogen production; oxygen modification; pyridine modification.