Photocatalytic Stille Cross-coupling on Gold/g-C3N4 Nano-heterojunction

Heterogeneous catalysts have been developed for C-C coupling reactions, but stand low activity and always proceed under harsh conditions. Photocatalytic Stille cross-coupling reaction as a green catalytic method for C-C bond formation is of great interest for a wide range of scientists but still lacks stable and highly efficient catalysts. Herein, we have designed an Au nanoparticle-graphitic carbon nitride heterojunction as an outstanding photo-catalyst for artificial photosynthesis in Stille cross-coupling reaction. The interface effect between metal and semiconductor makes electron rectify and prevents the recombination of electron-hole pairs. Moreover, the efficiency of Au nanoparticle catalysts could be adjusted by gold contents. Thus the turnover frequency(TOF) value reached the highest level of 788 h −1 over the optimal heterojunction catalyst. Most importantly, the C-C bond formation reaction has been proved to be carried out well under visible light irradiation, indicating the low-cost organic synthesis process. Further analysis confirmed the stability and general application of our heterogeneous Au nano-heterojunction catalyst.