Highly active tantalum(v) nitride nanoparticles prepared from a mesoporous carbon nitride template for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution under visible light irradiation

A new synthetic method to prepare tantalum(v) nitride (Ta3N5) nanoparticles from a mesoporous carbon nitride template is proposed; the Ta3N5 has a high surface area, a low density of defect sites, and shows one magnitude higher activity than the bulk Ta3N5 for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution under visible light irradiation.