Search

We present a method for the preparation of thin films on sapphire substrates of the carbon nitride precursors dicyandiamide (C 2 N 4 H 4 ), melamine (C 3 N 6 H 6 ), and melem (C 6 N 10 H 6 ), using the femtosecond-pulsed laser deposition technique (femto-PLD) at different temperatures. The depositions were carried out under high vacuum with a femtosecond-pulsed laser. The focused laser beam is scanned on the surface of a rotating target consisting of the pelletized compounds. The resulting polycrystalline, opaque films were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, infrared, Raman, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, photoluminescence, SEM, and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry measurements. The crystal structures and optical/spectroscopic results of the obtained rough films largely match those of the bulk materials.

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) have emerged as a new class of crystalline porous polymers displaying molecular tunability combined with structural definition. Here, a series of three conjugated, photoactive azine-linked COFs based on pyrene building blocks which differ in the number of nitrogen atoms in the peripheral aromatic units is presented. The structure of the COFs is analyzed by combined experimental and computational physisorption as well as quantum-chemical calculations, which suggest a slipped-stacked arrangement of the 2D layers. Photocurrents of up to 6 mu A cm(-2) with subsecond photoresponse times are measured on thin film samples for the first time. While all COFs are capable of producing hydrogen from water, their efficiency increases significantly with decreasing number of nitrogen atoms. The trending activities are rationalized by photoelectrochemical measurements and quantum-chemical calculations which suggest an increase in the thermodynamic driving force with decreasing nitrogen content to be the origin of the observed differences in hydrogen evolution activities.

The design of stable, yet highly tunable organic photocatalysts which orchestrate multi-step electron transfer reactions is at the heart of the newly emerging field of polymer photocatalysis. Covalent triazine frameworks such as the archetypal CTF-1 have been theorized to constitute a new class of photocatalytically active polymers for light-driven water splitting. Here, we revisit the ionothermal synthesis of CTF-1 by trimerization of 1,4-dicyanobenzene catalyzed by the Lewis acid zinc chloride and demonstrate that the microporous black polymer CTF-1 is essentially inactive for hydrogen evolution. Instead, highly photoactive phenyl-triazine oligomers (PTOs) with higher crystallinity as compared to CTF-1 are obtained by lowering the reaction temperature to 300 °C and prolonging the reaction time to >150 hours. The low reaction temperature of the PTOs largely prevents incipient carbonization and thus results in a carbon-to-nitrogen weight ratio close to the theoretical value of 3.43. The oligomers were characterized by MALDI-TOF and quantitative solid-state NMR spectroscopy, revealing variations in size, connectivity and thus nitrile-to-triazine ratios depending on the initial precursor dilution. The most active PTO samples efficiently and stably reduce water to hydrogen with an average rate of 1076 (±278) μmol h−1 g−1 under simulated sunlight illumination, which is competitive with the best carbon nitride-based and purely organic photocatalysts. The photocatalytic activity of the PTOs is found to sensitively depend on the polymerization degree, thus suggesting a prominent role of the unreacted nitrile moieties in the photocatalytic process. Notably, PTOs even show moderate hydrogen production without the addition of any co-catalyst.

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) have recently emerged as a new generation of porous polymers combining molecular functionality with the robustness and structural definition of crystalline solids. Drawing on the recent development of tailor-made semiconducting COFs, we report here on a new COF capable of visible-light driven hydrogen generation in the presence of Pt as a proton reduction catalyst (PRC). The COF is based on hydrazone-linked functionalized triazine and phenyl building blocks and adopts a layered structure with a honeycomb-type lattice featuring mesopores of 3.8 nm and the highest surface area among all hydrazone-based COFs reported to date. When illuminated with visible light, the Pt-doped COF continuously produces hydrogen from water without signs of degradation. With their precise molecular organization and modular structure combined with high porosity, photoactive COFs represent well-defined model systems to study and adjust the molecular entities central to the photocatalytic process.

Redox active electrode materials derived from organic precursors are of interest for use as alternative cathodes in Li batteries due to the potential for their sustainable production from renewable resources. Here, a series of organic networks that either contain triazine units or are derived from triazine-containing precursors are evaluated as cathodes versus Li metal anodes as possible active materials in Li batteries. The role of the molecular structure on the electrochemical performance is studied by comparing several materials prepared across a range of conditions allowing control over functionality and long-range order. Well-defined structures in which the triazine unit persists in the final material exhibit very low capacities at voltages relevant for cathode materials (

Nanosheets of a crystalline 2D carbon nitride were obtained by ionothermal synthesis of the layered bulk material poly(triazine imide), PTI, followed by one-step liquid exfoliation in water. Triazine-based nanosheets are 1-2 nm in height and afford chemically and colloidally stable suspensions under both basic and acidic conditions. We use solid-state NMR spectroscopy of isotopically enriched, restacked nanosheets as a tool to indirectly monitor the exfoliation process and carve out the chemical changes occurring upon exfoliation, as well as to determine the nanosheet thickness. PTI nanosheets show significantly enhanced visible-light driven photocatalytic activity toward hydrogen evolution compared to their bulk counterpart, which highlights the crucial role of morphology and surface area on the photocatalytic performance of carbon nitride materials.

A new dimension: The doping of amorphous poly(triazine imide) (PTI) through ionothermal copolymerization of dicyandiamide with 4-amino-2,6-dihydroxypyrimidine (4AP) results in triazine-based carbon nitrides with increased photoactivity for water splitting compared to crystalline poly(triazine imide) (PTI/Li(+)Cl(-), see picture) and melon-type carbon nitrides. This family of carbon nitride semiconductors has potential as low-cost, environmentally clean photocatalysts for solar fuel production.

The transfer of supramolecular templating to the realm of metal–organic frameworks opens up new avenues to the design of novel hierarchically structured materials. We demonstrate the first synthesis of mesostructured zinc imidazolates in the presence of the cationic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), which acts as a template giving rise to ordered lamellar hybrid materials. A high degree of order spanning the atomic and mesoscale was ascertained by powder X-ray diffraction, electron diffraction, as well as solid-state NMR and IR spectroscopy. The metrics of the unit cells obtained for the zinc methylimidazolate and imidazolate species are a=(11.43±0.45), b=(9.55±0.35), c=(27.19±0.34) A, and a=(10.98±0.90), b=(8.95±0.95), c=(26.33±0.34) A, respectively, assuming orthorhombic symmetry. The derived structure model is consistent with a mesolamellar structure composed of bromine-terminated zinc (methyl)imidazolate chains interleaved with motionally rigid cationic surfactant molecules in an all-trans conformation. The hybrid materials exhibit unusually high thermal stability up to 300 °C, at which point CTAB is lost and evidence for a thermally induced transformation into poorly crystalline mesostructures with larger feature sizes is obtained. Treatment with ethanol effects the extraction of CTAB from the material, followed by facile transformation into pure microporous ZIF-8 nanoparticles within minutes, thus demonstrating a unique transition from a mesostructure into a microporous zinc imidazolate.