Construction, structure and photocatalysis of janus nanofiber modified by g-C3N4 nanosheets heterostructure photocatalysts

Abstract The construction of photocatalyst with gradient band structure is guided by the principle of band gap engineering. Rational structural design is advanced and applied to construct a new-typed peculiarly structural and functional carbon-based [TiO2/C]//[Bi2WO6/C] Janus nanofiber modified by g-C3N4 nanosheets heterostructure photocatalyst (denoted as TB-JgHP). The flexible carbon-based [TiO2/C]//[Bi2WO6/C] Janus nanofiber with one side responding to ultraviolet light and the other capturing visible light is fabricated by conjugate electrospinning, and then g-C3N4 nanosheets are uniformly grown in-situ on the surface of the Janus nanofibers by using gas-solid reaction via gasification of urea. The optimized TB-JgHP possesses remarkable hydrogen evolution efficiency (17.48 mmol h−1 g−1) and methylene blue degradation rate (99.2%) under simulated sunlight illumination for 100 min, demonstrating prominent dual-functional characteristics. The enhanced photocatalytic performance benefits from the unique Janus structure as well as the synergistic effects among the triple heterostructures of TiO2 and Bi2WO6, g-C3N4 and TiO2, g-C3N4 and Bi2WO6. The formation of gradient band structure among heterostructures is more conducive to the multi-step separation of photo-induced electron-hole pairs and more effective absorption of light. Further, flexible self-standing carbon-based photocatalysts not only have outstanding electron transport performance, but also are easy to separate from solution with preeminent recyclable stability. Based on a series of characterization techniques, it is further proved that TB-JgHP has higher carrier separation efficiency than the counterpart contrast samples. The formation mechanism of TB-JgHP is proposed, and the construction technique is established. The design philosophy and construction technique presented in this work pave a new avenue for research and development of other heterostructure photocatalysts.