A curly architectured graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) towards efficient visible-light photocatalytic H2 evolution

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) is a promising metal-free photocatalyst for artificial photosynthesis and renewable solar-to-fuel conversion. However, the bulk g-C3N4 (GCN-B) powders derived from thermal polymerization only exhibit low photocatalytic efficiency. To this end, herein, we developed a precursor-reforming protocol to prepare the unique curly architectured g-C3N4 (GCN-CLA) by the direct calcination of the formed melamine-based precursor from a nitric acid-induced hydrothermal approach. Compared to the GCN-B, the GCN-CLA having thin-layer nanosheets with an average thickness of 10 nm possesses faster photogenerated electron-hole transport, larger specific surface area, fewer defect density, and stronger hydrogen proton thermodynamic driving force. Eventually, the GCN-CLA shows a superior photocatalytic H-2 improved rate of 1949 mu mol g(-1) h(-1) under visible light, as well as a notable apparent quantum yield of 10.8% at 420 nm. Simultaneously, the photocatalytic activity of the as-fabricated GCN-CLA photocatalyst is not only much higher than that of the top-down acid treated g-C3N4 (GCN-AT) but also displays excellent photostability. Our work provides a new bottom-up precursor-reforming strategy for designing high performance g-C3N4 nanomaterials towards sustainable photocataysis applications.