Fabricating a type II heterojunction by growing lead-free perovskite Cs₂AgBiBr₆ in situ on graphite-like g-C₃N₄ nanosheets for enhanced photocatalytic CO₂ reduction

Perovskite-based photocatalysts have received significant attention for converting CO2 into fuels, such as CO, CH4 or long alkyl chains. However, the use of these catalysts is plagued by several limitations, such as poor stability, lead toxicity, and inadequate conversion efficiency due to the rapid recombination of carriers. Herein, a g-C3N4@Cs2AgBiBr6 (CABB) type II heterojunction photocatalyst has been prepared by growing lead-free CABB nanocrystals (10-14 nm) on the graphite-like carbon nitride (g-C3N4) nanosheet using the in situ crystallization method. The resulting nanocomposite, g-C3N4@CABB, demonstrated an efficient charge transfer pathway via a typical type II heterojunction. With formation rates of 10.30 mu mol g(-1) h(-1) for CO and 0.88 mu mol g(-1) h(-1) for CH4 under visible light irradiation, the nanocomposite exhibited enhanced photocatalytic efficiency in CO2 reduction compared to CABB and g-C3N4. The improved photocatalytic performance of the g-C3N4@CABB nanocomposite was attributed to the fabricated type II heterojunction, which boosted the interfacial charge transfer from g-C3N4 to CABB. This work will inspire the design of heterojunction-based photocatalysts and increase the fundamental understanding of perovskite-based catalysts in the CO2 photoreduction process.