Nanostructured g-C3N4 synergistically with hydrogen peroxide as a metal-free photocatalyst for efficient degradation of organic dye pollutants

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) is a typical non-metallic n-type semiconductor. Due to its good chemical stability, low cost, no secondary pollution, and ability to respond to visible light, the g-C3N4 material has important application prospects in the field of photocatalysis. This study constructed a complex system of photocatalysis and advanced oxidation processes by combining g-C3N4 with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) for efficient photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants. Firstly, using urea as raw material, the g-C3N4 photocatalytic products were prepared via thermal polymerization reaction, and the effect of calcination temperature on the properties of g-C3N4 materials was studied. Subsequently, the photocatalytic degradation performances of the g-C3N4 photocatalytic system on organic pollutants with and without the H2O2 addition were investigated by using methylene blue (MB) and rhodamine B (RhB) as the target pollutants. The research results indicate that the g-C3N4 product obtained at 580 degrees C exhibited excellent degradation ability towards organic dyes. With the addition of H2O2, the degradation rates of MB and RhB can reach about 94.2% and 95.3% within 50 min, respectively. Finally, the degradation mechanism of organic pollutants by the complex system in photocatalytic reactions was explored. This work provides some significant insights into the synergistic effect between photocatalysis and advanced oxidation processes by combining simple unmodified g-C3N4 with H2O2 in the degradation of organic dye pollutants.