Tailored amorphization of graphitic carbon nitride triggers superior photocatalytic C-C coupling towards the synthesis of perfluoroalkyl derivatives

In this work, we explored a post-synthetic modification of the well-known graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN) by means of an "amorphization" treatment and evaluate the resulting change in photocatalytic activity towards the synthesis of valuable perfluoroalkyl derivatives. The as-prepared "super-amorphous" CN (SACN) exhibits a significant increase of the photocatalytic activity (up to a six-fold enhancement with the optimum structure with respect to g-CN), which originates from the lower degree of crystallinity of the CN and its reduced bandgap. The SACN photocatalysts display versatility and good tolerance towards functional group variations of the reagents, emerging as a potential new benchmark CN structure for heterogeneous organic photocatalysis. Modified carbon nitrides were prepared from graphitic carbon nitride by thermal amorphization. The investigation of the amorphization/catalytic activity relationship was carried out in the context of perfluoroalkyl compound synthesis.