Synthesis of g-C₃N₄/SmFeO₃ nanosheets Z-scheme based nanocomposites as efficient visible light photocatalysts for CO₂ reduction and Congo red degradation

In this research work, g-C3N4/SmFeO3 nanosheets Z-scheme based nanocomposites were effectively synthesized by employing PVP as a structure-manipulating agent. The comparative investigations proved that g-C3N4 and SmFeO3 nanosheets have exceptional performances and photocatalytic activities as compared to SmFeO3 and g-C3N4 nanoparticles. Based on TEM, HRTEM, XRD, DRS, XPS, PL, FTIR, PEC, BET, and FS spectra it is proved that the coupling of CN nanosheets has effectively enlarged the surface area and enhanced the charge separation of SmFeO3 nanosheets. Compared to pristine SmFeO3 nanosheets, the most active 3CN-SFOS nanocomposite showed similar to 3.5 times improvement in catalytic activities for CO2 reduction and Congo red degradation. Adding more, the scavenger tests confirmed that center dot O2- and center dot OH are the most active species for decontamination of Congo red. Finally, our present innovative work will open a novel gateway for the preparation of g-C3N4/SmFeO3 nanosheets based Z-scheme nanocomposites and their applications for CO2 reduction and environment protection.