The Modification of Graphite Carbon Nitride and Its Applications in Photocatalysis

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃ N₄) is one of the most promising photocatalytic materials due to its unique electronic structure, visible light response, and excellent chemical stability. Whereas, the practical applications of pristine g-C₃ N₄ in photocatalysis are still facing with huge challenges, such as poor specific surface area, low electronic conductivity, insufficient visible light absorption, and fast recombination of photoinduced charge carriers. Lots of research works have been carried out to improve the photocatalytic performance and extend the applications of g-C₃ N₄, and many exciting progresses have been gained. In this work, we summarized the research status of g-C₃ N₄ in the field of photocatalysis. The modified strategies based on g-C₃ N₄ were discussed, including molecular structure engineering, morphology control, co-catalyst deposition, heterostructure and homostructure construction. Then, the multifunctional applications of g-C₃ N₄ based materials in photocatalysis including H₂ evolution, pollutant removal, CO₂ reduction and organic synthesis were reviewed, and the opportunities and challenges for the development of high-performance g-C N based materials were prospected.