Photocatalysis is considered to be one of the possible routes to solve energy crises at a low cost. Graphitic-C3N4 combined with other semiconductors at the nanoscale has demonstrated a promising potential in photocatalysis application owing to the heterojunction configuration. In this study, Ag/g-C3N4/CuNb2O6-4 (mass ratio of CuNb2O6 to g-C3N4 = 1:4) composites were prepared by photo-deposition of Ag particles on the hydrothermally synthesized g-C3N4/CuNb2O6-4 composites. The microstructure, morphology, and light absorption property of the photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffractometry, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The photocatalytic properties of photocatalysts and active species responsible for the degradation of RhB dye under visible light were investigated. After loading Ag particles on the g-C3N4/CuNb2O6-4 composites, the resulting Ag/g-C3N4/CuNb2O6-4 composites show a bandgap of similar to 2.31 eV and a significant increase in photocatalytic efficiency. In particular, the photocatalytic activity of 11 Ag/g-C3N4/CuNb2O6-4 composite (Ag mass fraction = 11) is nearly seven times that of orthorhombic CuNb2O6 and 3.8 times that of g-C3N4/CNO-4 composite. The Z-scheme heterojunction has been successfully formed in the Ag/g-C3N4/CuNb2O6-4 composites and it enhances the photocatalytic performance significantly with the best degradation efficiency of 88 after 2 h.
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