A 2D/2D g-C3N4/BiOBr S-Scheme Heterojunction for Photocatalytic Oxidative Coupling of Benzylamine and Degradation of Tetracycline: Enhanced Charge Separation and Mechanistic Insights
4 affiliations
- 1College of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin 300457, China
- 2Department of Energy Storage/Conversion Engineering (BK21 FOUR) of Graduate School, Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Research Center, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju-si 54896, Jeollabuk-do, Republic of Korea
- 3Kemai Chemical Co., Ltd., Tianjin 300270, China
- 4Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brine Chemical Engineering and Resource Eco-Utilization, Tianjin 300457, China
Abstract
Efficient interfacial carrier transport and charge separation are critical for maximizing photocatalytic performance. Herein, a 2D/2D g-C3N4/BiOBr heterostructure photocatalyst is constructed using a solvent-free, high-energy ball-milling approach, which results in two-dimensional BiOBr nanoflakes evenly anchored on two-dimensional ultrathin g-C3N4 nanosheets. This tailored architectural design expands the specific surface area, increases active site exposure, and optimizes interfacial contact. For both the visible-light-driven oxidative coupling of primary amines and tetracycline degradation, the g-C3N4/BiOBr composite exhibits enhanced reactivity. The optimized composite (with 5 wt% g-C3N4) achieves an 80.1% yield and 95.2% imine selectivity for N-benzylidenebenzylamine, as well as a removal efficiency of 84.3% for tetracycline. Combined material characterizations and density functional theory (DFT) calculations confirm that the improvement in photocatalytic performance arises from the constructed S-scheme heterojunction across the g-C3N4/BiOBr contact interface. Under this charge transfer mode, photogenerated electrons in the conduction band (CB) of BiOBr selectively recombine with holes in the valence band g-C3N4. The electrons and holes with higher energy are respectively preserved in the CB of g-C3N4 and the VB of BiOBr to drive the corresponding surface reactions. The unique 2D/2D structure of the composite favors mass transfer processes in the reaction system while exposing abundant reactive sites, which can also enhance the photocatalytic performance. In addition, the g-C3N4/BiOBr S-scheme photocatalyst exhibits excellent reusability. This study offers a novel perspective for constructing high-performance S-scheme photocatalysts applied in organic synthesis.
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BibTeX
@article{li20262d2d,
title = {{A 2D/2D g-C3N4/BiOBr S-Scheme Heterojunction for Photocatalytic Oxidative Coupling of Benzylamine and Degradation of Tetracycline: Enhanced Charge Separation and Mechanistic Insights}},
author = {Zhen Li and Dongmei Wang and Ruijie Li and Jing An and Xingjie Xue and Yue Yao and Yan Jiang and Xiaoyuan Liao and Dong Jin Yoo and Shuxiang Lyu},
journal = {Catalysts},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/catal16100905},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4344/16/10/905},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - A 2D/2D g-C3N4/BiOBr S-Scheme Heterojunction for Photocatalytic Oxidative Coupling of Benzylamine and Degradation of Tetracycline: Enhanced Charge Separation and Mechanistic Insights
AU - Zhen Li
AU - Dongmei Wang
AU - Ruijie Li
AU - Jing An
AU - Xingjie Xue
AU - Yue Yao
AU - Yan Jiang
AU - Xiaoyuan Liao
AU - Dong Jin Yoo
AU - Shuxiang Lyu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/13
JO - Catalysts
DO - 10.3390/catal16100905
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4344/16/10/905
AB - Efficient interfacial carrier transport and charge separation are critical for maximizing photocatalytic performance. Herein, a 2D/2D g-C3N4/BiOBr heterostructure photocatalyst is constructed using a solvent-free, high-energy ball-milling approach, which results in two-dimensional BiOBr nanoflakes evenly anchored on two-dimensional ultrathin g-C3N4 nanosheets. This tailored architectural design expands the specific surface area, increases active site exposure, and optimizes interfacial contact. For both the visible-light-driven oxidative coupling of primary amines and tetracycline degradation, the g-C3N4/BiOBr composite exhibits enhanced reactivity. The optimized composite (with 5 wt% g-C3N4) achieves an 80.1% yield and 95.2% imine selectivity for N-benzylidenebenzylamine, as well as a removal efficiency of 84.3% for tetracycline. Combined material characterizations and density functional theory (DFT) calculations confirm that the improvement in photocatalytic performance arises from the constructed S-scheme heterojunction across the g-C3N4/BiOBr contact interface. Under this charge transfer mode, photogenerated electrons in the conduction band (CB) of BiOBr selectively recombine with holes in the valence band g-C3N4. The electrons and holes with higher energy are respectively preserved in the CB of g-C3N4 and the VB of BiOBr to drive the corresponding surface reactions. The unique 2D/2D structure of the composite favors mass transfer processes in the reaction system while exposing abundant reactive sites, which can also enhance the photocatalytic performance. In addition, the g-C3N4/BiOBr S-scheme photocatalyst exhibits excellent reusability. This study offers a novel perspective for constructing high-performance S-scheme photocatalysts applied in organic synthesis.
SN - 2073-4344
ER -