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Interfacial coupling of two-dimensional semiconductor materials is an effective option to construct heterojunction for enhancing photocatalytic activity. In this paper, a g-C3N4/SnS2 type-II heterojunction was constructed using an electrostatic self-assembly method. The g-C3N4/SnS2-60 showed a CO yield of 2.54 µmol g−1, which was 2.96 and 22.1 times that of the g-C3N4 and SnS2 nanosheets, respectively. The efficient carrier separation efficiency of the composites is mainly derived from the type-II heterojunction structure and the interfacial synergy of the two-dimensional (2D) structure. In addition, the high light response intensity of the g-C3N4/SnS2 composite also had excellent electron excitation and transfer ability. This work provides a new vision for the rational design of 2D heterojunction-based photocatalysts for the study of CO2 reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ce doping TiO2/halloysite nanotubes photocatalyst (Ce-TiO2/HNTs) was prepared for enhanced photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline (TC). The crystal structure, morphology and photoelectrochemical (PEC) properties have been researched by XRD, TEM, UV–vis DRS and other characterized technologies. The TEM results showed that the Ce-TiO2 nanoparticles were evenly dispersed on the surface of HNTs with about 5 nm pore structure. The UV–vis DRS results showed that the doping of Ce effectively broadened the photo-absorption capacity of the pure TiO2. The PEC results confirmed that the doping of Ce decreased the electrochemical impedance of the photogenerated carrier in the transfer process and greatly improved the photogenerated efficiency of the electron within the TiO2 NPs. The XPS analysis showed that Ce co-existed in the form of Ce3+ and Ce4+ oxidation states in the Ce-TiO2/HNTs. The photodegradation experiments showed that Ce-TiO2/HNTs exhibited the enhanced photocatalytic activity under the visible-light irradiation compared with the pure TiO2 NPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• LSPR effect enhanced Z-scheme ZnO/Au/g-C 3 N 4 micro needles film (3-ZAC) has been prepared for the photoreduction of CO 2 into CO under UV–vis light irradiation. • Au NPs at the interface of ZnO/g-C 3 N 4 not only act as the electron-transfer bridge, but also as LSPR excited source to speed up the separation of electron-hole pairs photogenerated in the semiconductors. • DFT calculation and FDTD simulation methods has been used to prove the transfer processes of photogenerated electron. The photoproduction of CO from the photocatalytic CO 2 reduction process has been evidenced from 13C isotope tracer tests. • This work demonstrates the importance of the build-in electric field formed at g-C 3 N 4 /ZnO interface and local electromagnetic field of Au NPs for the photoreduction process, providing an inspiring concept for future advancement in this area. Local Surface Plasma Resonance (LSPR) effect enhanced Z-scheme ZnO/Au/g-C 3 N 4 micro-needles film (3-ZAC) has been prepared for the photoreduction of CO 2 into CO under UV–vis light irradiation. Photoreduction experiments show that 3-ZAC has the excellent photocatalytic performance and reusability. The CO production can be achieved 689.7 μmol/m2 after 8 h reaction time, which is 4.5 higher than that of the pure ZnO film. 13C isotope test shows that CO is produced from CO 2 by photoreduction. DFT calculations confirm that build-in electric field formed at g-C 3 N 4 /ZnO interface effectively promoted the electron transfer efficiency in Z-scheme interface. FDTD simulations prove that Au NPs not only act as electron-transfer bridge, but also as LSPR excited source to speed up the separation of electron-hole pairs. In-situ FTIR technique was used to investigate the CO 2 photoreduction process. The above characteristics together maximize the electron transfer efficiency, which causes the material has enhanced photocatalytic performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]