Synthesis of g-C3N4/CaIn2S4 composites with enhanced photocatalytic activity under visible light irradiation

A series of graphite-like g-C3N4 hybridized CaIn2S4 photocatalysts with different g-C3N4 contents were fabricated via a facile hydrothermal synthetic method. These as-prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), UV-Visible absorption spectra (UV-Vis) and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectra. Under visible light irradiation, the as-prepared g-C3N4/CaIn2S4 nanocomposites showed enhanced photocatalytic performance for rhodamine B (RhB) degradation. The sample with 5 wt% g-C3N4 hybridized CaIn2S4 exhibited the highest photocatalytic activity. The enhanced photocatalytic performance under visible light irradiation could be attributed to the high separation efficiency of the photogenerated electron-hole pairs. This work could provide a new insight into the fabrication of visible light driven photocatalysts with efficient and stable performance.