Self-floating g-C3N4/h-BN/Au photo-thermal catalysts with unprecedented thermostability at solar-activated heating condition for reusable degradation of organic pollutants

Photo-thermal catalytic (PTC) degradation as an ideal candidate for wastewater treatment is yet suffering from the unsatisfied recyclability due to the thermal effect-exacerbated serious photocorrosion of semiconductor-based catalysts. Based on polymeric graphite carbon nitride (g-C3N4) hybridized with antioxidative hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) and grafted with stable Au nanoparticles (NPs), we provide thermostable g-C3N4/h-BN/Au nano-catalysts for high-efficient degradation of organic dyes at solar-activated heating condition. The fantastic PTC activity with optimal degradation rate up to ∼ 0.30 min−1 is far better than most mainstream hybrid catalysts. The unprecedented thermal recyclability is convincingly verified by consecutive 10 repeated tests within 500 min measurements under solar-driven heating condition (∼60 °C), wherein the negligible drop of degradation efficiency is only ∼ 0.2% lower than pristine one. The ingenious self-floating PTC membranes can be conveniently established by immobilizing the resultant nano-catalysts into bio-carbon porous frames and viscous bacterial nano-celluloses, facilitating practical wastewater decontamination in real-world scenarios. [Display omitted] •Smart PTC catalysts with superior anti-photocorrosion at solar-heating conditions.•Polymeric g-C3N4 hybridized with antioxidative h-BN and grafted with noble Au NPs.•Separate extraction of photoexcited holes and electrons by dual transfer channels.•Sustainable self-floating PTC active membranes for reusable wastewater treatment.