Synthesis of novel nanoflowers-like P, K co-doped graphitic carbon nitride for efficient HO photoproduction.

Photocatalytic oxygen reduction is considered an economical and green way to produce HO. Graphitic carbon nitride is a common photocatalyst, but its activity is limited by the low specific surface area and the high recombination rate of photogenerated electron-hole pairs. Herein, nanoflowers-like phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) co-doped graphitic carbon nitride (PKCN) is synthesized by co-polymerization of ammonium dihydrogen phosphate and melamine in the mixed molten salt (KCl/LiCl) medium. Within 90 min, the synthesized PKCN-0.05 can produce 4.97 mmol L of HO, which is 7.8 times higher than that of pure bulk g-CN. The enhanced photocatalytic performance of PKCN-0.05 is mainly attributed to the following: 1) KCl/LiCl molten salt induces melamine to form a three-dimensional flower-like morphology, which expands the specific surface area, exposes more active sites, and improves the light utilization efficiency; 2) high crystallinity of PKCN-0.05 and the K ions inserted between the interlayers are beneficial for accelerating electron transfer; 3) the formation of PN bonds and the existence of N vacancies promotes the separation of photoproduced carriers; 4) the negatively shifted conduction band of PKCN-0.05 favors oxygen reduction.