As a fascinating conjugated polymer, graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) has become a new research hotspot and drawn broad interdisciplinary attention as a metal-free and visible-light-responsive photocatalyst in the arena of solar energy conversion and environmental remediation. This is due to its appealing electronic band structure, high physicochemical stability, and “earth-abundant” nature. This critical review summarizes a panorama of the latest progress related to the design and construction of pristine g-C3N4 and g-C3N4-based nanocomposites, including (1) nanoarchitecture design of bare g-C3N4, such as hard and soft templating approaches, supramolecular preorganization assembly, exfoliation, and template-free synthesis routes, (2) functionalization of g-C3N4 at an atomic level (elemental doping) and molecular level (copolymerization), and (3) modification of g-C3N4 with well-matched energy levels of another semiconductor or a metal as a cocatalyst to form heterojunction nanostructures. The constructi...

Graphitic Carbon Nitride (g-C3N4)-Based Photocatalysts for Artificial Photosynthesis and Environmental Remediation: Are We a Step Closer To Achieving Sustainability?

A review on g-C3N4-based photocatalysts

Abatement of various types of VOCs by adsorption/catalytic oxidation: A review

A critical review on VOCs adsorption by different porous materials: Species, mechanisms and modification methods.

Adsorption materials for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and the key factors for VOCs adsorption process: A review

This work investigates the adsorption of organosulfur compounds in model fuels over metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) using a combined experimental/computational approach. Adsorption isotherms of three MOFs, MIL-101(Cr), MIL-100(Fe), and Cu-BTC, follow the Langmuir isotherm models, and Cu-BTC shows the highest adsorption capacity for both dibenzothiophene (DBT) and 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT), ascribing to the highest density of adsorption sites and fairly strong adsorption sites on Cu-BTC. Experimental results show adsorption selectivity of various compounds in model fuels follows the order of quinoline (Qu) > indole (In) > DBT > 4,6-DMDBT > naphthalene (Nap), which is consistent with the order of calculated binding energies. Adsorption capacities of thiophenic compounds decrease significantly with the introduction of Qu, In, or water due to their strong competitive adsorptions over the coordinatively unsaturated Cu sites on Cu-BTC. The binding energies of Qu, In, H2O, and DBT are calculated a...

A Combined Experimental/Computational Study on the Adsorption of Organosulfur Compounds over Metal–Organic Frameworks from Fuels

Trace amount of thiophenic compounds in fuel is harmful to the environment and challenging to get rid of efficiently. The objective of this work is to explore a new visible-light induced photocatalytic oxidative desulfurization (PODS) approach using BiVO 4 /C 3 N 4 @SiO 2 with air/cumene hydroperoxide (CHP) under ambient conditions. A series of BiVO 4 /C 3 N 4 @SiO 2 photocatalysts were prepared by a hydrothermal method and PODS tests were carried out in a Xenon lamp built-in batch reactor. The dibenzothiophene conversion of the PODS system reached as high as 99%. BiVO 4 /C 3 N 4 @SiO 2 showed high vis-photocatalytic activity due to the effective charge separation of BiVO 4 /C 3 N 4 and small particle size of BiVO 4 . Additional air flow was demonstrated to effectively enhance PODS kinetics of BiVO 4 /C 3 N 4 @SiO 2 with CHP, which may be ascribed to the accelerated ROO generation by air with R radical for DBT oxidation. Mixing silica gel with BiVO 4 /C 3 N 4 @SiO 2 as a hybrid adsorbent under photocatalytic adsorptive desulfurization (PADS) showed a dramatically enhanced desulfurization capacity (7.2 mg/g) compared to that under sole ADS. When fitted to Langmuir adsorption isotherm, K and q m reached as high as 0.24 and 7.41. The integrated PADS system can be particularly suitable for s single-stage desulfurization for low-sulfur fuel production under visible light at ambient conditions.

Guang Miao

Papers

Abatement of various types of VOCs by adsorption/catalytic oxidation: A review

A Combined Experimental/Computational Study on the Adsorption of Organosulfur Compounds over Metal–Organic Frameworks from Fuels

Visible-light induced photocatalytic oxidative desulfurization using BiVO4/C3N4@SiO2 with air/cumene hydroperoxide under ambient conditions

Catalytic adsorptive desulfurization of model diesel fuel using TiO2/SBA-15 under mild conditions

Dynamic catalytic adsorptive desulfurization of real diesel over ultra‐stable and low‐cost silica gel‐supported TiO2