One-Step Synthesis of Polymeric Carbon Nitride Films for Photoelectrochemical Applications

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrochemistry
• Photocatalysis

Background:

• Polymeric carbon nitrides (PCNs) are promising metal-free photocatalysts for energy and environmental applications.
• Fabricating stable PCN films with tunable properties is crucial for photoelectrochemical devices.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a versatile method for creating PCN films on nickel foam substrates.
• To investigate the influence of synthesis parameters on PCN film properties and electrochemical performance.

Main Methods:

• A chemical vapor infiltration (CVI) strategy was employed for one-step PCN growth from melamine on porous Ni foam.
• Reaction temperature and precursor amount were systematically varied to control film characteristics.

Main Results:

• The CVI method successfully produced PCN films with controllable condensation degrees (melem/melon to melon-like).
• Varying precursor amounts influenced PCN mass and morphology.
• Optimized PCN films exhibited excellent oxygen evolution reaction (OER) performance, with Tafel slopes as low as ~65 mV/dec and photocurrent densities of ~1 mA/cm² at 1.6 V vs. RHE.

Conclusions:

• The CVI approach offers a facile and effective route for fabricating robust PCN films for photoelectrochemical applications.
• Tunable film properties through controlled synthesis parameters significantly impact OER efficiency.
• This work demonstrates the potential of PCN films for advanced green energy technologies.