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Updated: Jun 30, 2026
![[(DPEPhos)(bcp)Cu]PF6: A General and Broadly Applicable Copper-Based Photoredox Catalyst](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcloudfront.jove.com%2FCDNSource%2Fteasers%2F59739.jpg&w=3840&q=50)
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[(DPEPhos)(bcp)Cu]PF6: A General and Broadly Applicable Copper-Based Photoredox Catalyst
Published on: May 21, 2019
Nitrogen Vacancy-Engineered Copper-Loaded g-C3N4 for Enhanced Photo-Fenton-Like Activity: Synergistic Electron
Qiqi Gan1, Xiao Feng1, Dejun Wang1
1College of Chemistry, Jilin University, Changchun 130012, People's Republic of China.
Langmuir : the ACS Journal of Surfaces and Colloids
|June 29, 2026
Summary
Copper-loaded carbon nitride with nitrogen vacancies (Cu-Nv-CN) efficiently degrades tetracycline (TCH) via a photo-Fenton-like process. This advanced catalyst enhances charge carrier utilization for improved pollutant removal.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Chemistry
- Materials Science
- Photocatalysis
Background:
- Heterogeneous photo-Fenton-like systems enhance pollutant degradation by improving charge carrier separation and migration.
- Graphitic carbon nitride (CN) is a promising photocatalyst, but its efficiency can be limited by charge carrier recombination.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize and characterize copper-loaded carbon nitride with nitrogen vacancies (Cu-Nv-CN).
- To evaluate the heterogeneous photo-Fenton-like catalytic activity of Cu-Nv-CN for tetracycline (TCH) degradation.
- To elucidate the mechanism behind the enhanced catalytic performance.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of Cu-Nv-CN via a described method.
- Evaluation of TCH degradation efficiency using UV-Vis spectrophotometry.
- Characterization using surface photovoltage, femtosecond transient absorption (TA) spectroscopy, radical trapping experiments, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS).
Main Results:
- Cu-Nv-CN demonstrated high efficiency, eliminating 94.0% of TCH in 50 min with a degradation rate constant of 0.0522 min⁻¹.
- Copper (Cu) sites acted as electron trapping centers, and nitrogen vacancies (Nv) facilitated electron migration to Cu sites.
- Synergistic effects between Cu sites and Nv significantly improved photogenerated charge carrier utilization.
Conclusions:
- Cu-Nv-CN exhibits excellent heterogeneous photo-Fenton-like activity for TCH degradation.
- The enhanced performance is attributed to improved charge carrier separation and utilization facilitated by Cu sites and Nv.
- This study presents a viable strategy for enhancing the performance of CN-based photocatalysts in advanced oxidation processes.
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