Organic–Organic Hybrid g-C3N4/Ethanediamine Nanosheets for Photocatalytic H2 Evolution

Intercalation of hybrid composites or molecules to form a new structure and promote photocatalytic activities was ignored in comparison with other common strategies, including doping, heterojunction, morphology control, or exploring co-catalysts. In this work, a new photocatalyst with a novel structure was prepared by a mild solvothermal reaction through incorporating ethanediamine (EDA) molecules into the graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) interlayer. When EDA molecules are incorporated into the crystal structure of g-C3N4, forming the hybrid CN-EDA catalyst, not only its band structure changes from direct to indirect, but it also shows a higher reduction potential (higher conduction band energy). The novel hybrid structures, effects of organic molecules, and morphology play a key role in promoting the photocatalytic activity. Because of the diversity of components and corresponding tunable structures, constructing hybrid materials could be a novel and promising pathway in searching for a highly efficient photocatalyst for practical applications.