Ti3C2 MXene-induced interface charge transferred in Z-scheme heterojunction for efficient photocatalytic removal of nitric oxide

Currently, NO pollution is an urgent challenge for us to face, and photocatalytic degradation has been recognized as one of the most promising methods to reduce it. As a representative photocatalyst , g-C 3 N 4 has attracted researchers because of its low cost and excellent performance. In this work, a new triphasic Z-scheme heterostructure was built, TiO 2 /Ti 3 C 2 MXene/g-C 3 N 4 , to improve the visible-light irradiation-induced NO removal efficiency of g-C 3 N 4 . In this Z-scheme heterostructure, Ti 3 C 2 MXene could form a directional electron transfer thoroughfare between g-C 3 N 4 and TiO 2 to accelerate the electronic transmission rate, meanwhile, due to the specificity of the band structure, electrons on conduction band of g-C 3 N 4 and holes on valence band of TiO 2 can be well separated and react with the adsorbed species to achieve good photocatalytic performance. Because of the triphasic heterostructure formed by TiO 2 , Ti 3 C 2 MXene and g-C 3 N 4 , the efficiency of this compound for visible-light irradiation-induced NO removal improves from 32% to 56%. This work provides a new strategy to improve NO removal efficiency and shows a broader application prospect of photocatalysts with a triphasic structure.