Doping effect of non-metal group in porous ultrathin g-C3N4 nanosheets towards synergistically improved photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

Searching for effective approaches of accelerating charge separation and broadening optical absorption is critical for designing a high-performance photocatalytic system. Herein, a photocatalyst based on the non-metal group doped porous ultrathin g-C3N4 nanosheets (CNB NS) was prepared through a combined methodology of precursor reforming and thermal condensation. The synergistic effect of non-metal group doping and porous ultrathin nanosheet-architecture not only endow the material with improved light harvesting and regulated band structure, but also facilitate the electron–hole pair separation, supplying numerous active reactive sites and electron diffusion channels. As a result, the CNB NS photocatalyst exhibits a highly efficient photocatalytic H2 performance (the apparent quantum efficiency is 7.45% at 420 nm) and stability in water under the visible light, which is approximately 13 times higher than that of pure g-C3N4. This study may open a new perspective for designing the non-metal group doped g-C3N4 photocatalyst and further fabricate other advanced photocatalytic materials.