Single-source-precursor-assisted synthesis of porous WO3/g-C3N4 with enhanced photocatalytic property

In this paper, in-situ coupling of WO 3 with g-C 3 N 4 (WO 3 /g-C 3 N 4 ) was demonstrated by using melamine tungstate as a single-source precursor. The as-prepared WO 3 /g-C 3 N 4 nanocomposites were structurally characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). It was found that the single-source precursor not only ensures the close contact between WO 3 and g-C 3 N 4 , but also endows the porous structure of the product. Thus, the increased visible-light absorption, effective charge separation and enlarged surface area (22.64 m 2 /g) were achieved for the resultant product. The experimental results showed that WO 3 /g-C 3 N 4 heterostructure possesses excellent photocatalytic activity for degrading methyl orange (MO) and tetracycline (TC) under the visible light irradiation. Moreover, WO 3 /g-C 3 N 4 (5 wt%) sample exhibited the best photocatalytic activity. The radicals trap experiments revealed that both •O 2 − and holes make great contribution to the degradation of pollutants. Accordingly, a Z-scheme charge migration and recombination mechanism was proposed to elucidate the improved photocatalytic properties of WO 3 /g-C 3 N 4 . This study offers a new pathway for optimizing the microstructure of g-C 3 N 4 -based function materials and for improving their photocatalytic properties.