ZIF-8/g-C 3 N 4 photocatalysts: enhancing CO 2 reduction through improved adsorption and photocatalytic performance.

Nowadays, the widespread concern over controlling CO 2 emissions and mitigating the adverse effects of greenhouse gases on global climate has attracted significant attention. In this study, g-C 3 N 4 was synthesized by thermopolymerizing urea. Subsequently, ZIF-8 was combined with g-C 3 N 4 using an in situ deposition method, resulting in the fabrication of ZIF-8/g-C 3 N 4 composite photocatalysts at various molar ratios. Effective incorporation of ZIF-8 into g-C 3 N 4 suppressed the recombination of photogenerated electrons and holes, thereby enhancing CO 2 capture capacity and preserving light absorption capabilities. The ZIF-8/g-C 3 N 4 composite demonstrates excellent photocatalytic performance for CO 2 reduction, where the optimized material exhibited a CO 2 adsorption capacity 1.52 times that of pure g-C 3 N 4 and increased the conversion of CO 2 to CH 4 by more than sevenfold. This study harnesses the superior CO 2 adsorption properties of metal-organic frameworks to develop more efficient photocatalysts, enhancing CO 2 conversion efficacy and offering insights for developing efficient photocatalysts that utilize CO 2 .