TiO2 nanobelts with a uniform coating of g-C3N4 as a highly effective heterostructure for enhanced photocatalytic activities

A novel g-C3N4/TiO2 nanobelt (NB) heterostructure was successfully designed and prepared. The as prepared g-C3N4/TiO2 NB heterostructure exhibited high photocatalytic activity not only in the photodegradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) but also in photocatalytic H-2 production. The g-C3N4/TiO2 NB heterostructure with a mass ratio of 1:1 demonstrated the best performance in the photodegradation of RhB, whereas a mass ratio of 3:1 demonstrated the highest H-2 production rate of 46.6 mu mol h(-1) in photocatalytic H-2 production. We conclude that the synergistic effect between g-C3N4 and TiO2 NBs promotes the photogenerated carrier separation in space. This valuable insight into the rational architectural design of nanostructure-based photocatalysts is expected to shed light on other photocatalytic reaction systems in the future. (C) 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.