Graphitic carbon nitride nanosheet and ferroelectric PbTiO₃ nanoplates S-scheme heterostructure for enhancing hydrogen production and textile dye degradation

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) is a reliable photocatalyst that can be activated by visible light. However, its photocatalytic efficiencies are hindered by the rapid recombination of charge carriers on its surface. A hybrid photocatalyst consisting of a ferroelectric PbTiO₃ nanoplate/g-C₃N₄ S-scheme heterojunction was synthesized using an ultrasonic-assisted hydrothermal method, to overcome the aforementioned limitation. The PbTiO₃ nanoplates incorporated into the g-C₃N₄ matrix created a strong electric field, resulting in superior photocatalytic activities. This improvement can be attributed to the efficient separation of the photogenerated charge carriers. The hybrid photocatalyst (10PTCN) exhibits an impressive H₂ evolution rate (1587.82 µmol.g⁻¹.h⁻¹) under simulated solar irradiation. The hybrid photocatalysts demonstrated 99.40 % methylene blue (30 mg·L⁻¹) in 90 min under simulated solar irradiation with remarkable reusability. This work contributes to enhancing the understanding of utilizing ferroelectric 2D nanoplates to develop efficient charge transfer schemes for improved photocatalysts.