In Situ Formation of Pyridine-Type Carbonitrides-Modified Disorder-Engineered C-TiO2 Used for Enhanced Visible-Light-Driven Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

The exploration of low-cost, high-performance, and stable photocatalysts for the highly efficient conversion and storage of solar energy in hydrogen is of great importance. This study presents a novel pyridine-type carbonitrides (CN)-modified surface-disordered C-doped TiO2 (PCN/CTiO2@TiO2–x) catalyst used for photocatalytic H2 evolution from water. The employed preparation method of hydrolysis–calcination has the advantages of low-cost raw materials and easy scale-up. The optimized PCN/CTiO2@TiO2–x exhibited an impressive hydrogen evolution rate of ∼3743 μmol h–1 g–1 under simulated solar light (AM 1.5) and remained stable after five cycles. The maximal quantum efficiency reached 37.5% at 370 nm and 7.0% at 400 nm, which was superior or comparable to several reported relevant TiO2-based catalysts. Benefiting from the pyridine-type CN modification, disordered surface layer (TiO2–x), and increased oxygen vacancies/Ti3+ species, the photogenerated electrons moved rapidly from the visible-response C-doped Ti...