Boron doped mesoporous g-C3N4 nanosheets: Boosting photocatalytic nitrogen fixation performance under visible light

A simple two-step method was used to prepare g-C3N4 nanosheets doped with B atoms. The multi-layer porous morphology prolongs the transmission pathway of visible light inside, thereby improving the ability to capture visible light. The doped photosensitive B atoms can decrease the original bandgap of g-C3N4 and increase the material's sensitivity to visible light. According to the findings, B/g-C3N4 performs superbly in photocatalytic nitrogen fixation, with the best performance being 2 wt% B/g-C3N4 (81.56 mol/L-1.h-1), which has a nitrogen fixation efficiency 2.44 times higher than g-C3N4 (33.52 mol/L-1.h-1). Additionally, 2 wt% B/g-C3N4 exhibits strong photocatalytic stability due to the doping of B atoms.

Automated summary

A two-step method was used to prepare B-doped g-C3N4 nanosheets. The multi-layer porous morphology increases the transmission pathway of visible light, enhancing its capture ability. B doping decreases the bandgap and increases the sensitivity of g-C3N4 to visible light. The best performing photocatalyst for nitrogen fixation was found to be 2 wt% B/g-C3N4, which exhibited a nitrogen fixation efficiency 2.44 times higher than g-C3N4 (81.56 mol/L-1.h-1 vs 33.52 mol/L-1.h-1). Additionally, 2 wt% B/g-C3N4 showed strong photocatalytic stability.