2d Amorphous Coo Incorporated G-C3n4 Nanotubes For Improved Photocatalytic Performance

CoO nanomaterials have been identified as a potential visible-light-driven photocatalyst. However, they suffer from the rapid deactivation derived from the aggregation and thermally induced oxidation of CoO. Herein, a facile and scalable strategy is proposed to effectively inhibit the aggregation and oxidation of CoO via the construction of a 2D/2D amorphous CoO (a-CoO)/g-C3N4(CN) nanotubular heterojunction. The synthesized 2D/2D CN/a-CoO heterojunction shows appreciably improved activity toward rhodamine B (RhB) degradation and no deactivation is detected even after four consecutive photodegradation cycles. Moreover, the optimized 2D/2D CN/a-CoO heterojunction exhibits hydrogen evolution rate of 428.8 mu mol h(-1) g(-1), which is 5.9 times than that of CN under visible-light irradiation. The superior photocatalytic performance is attributed to the large interface between 2D components, the amorphous structure of disordered a-CoO, the multiple scattering in the tubular heterojunction, and the efficient spatial charge-separation through Co-N bond due to the synergistic coupling effects between CN and a-CoO. This work is helpful to promote the application of a-CoO in photocatalysis while the unique 2D/2D heterojunction could be the fundamental basis for emerging applications in energy-related and beyond.