Overall water splitting by Pt/g-C(3)N(4) photocatalysts without using sacrificial agents

We report the direct splitting of pure water by light-excited graphitic carbon nitride (g-C(3)N(4)) modified with Pt, PtO(x), and CoO(x) as redox cocatalysts, while pure g-C(3)N(4) is virtually inactive for overall water splitting by photocatalysis. The novelty is in the selective creation of both H(2) and O(2) cocatalysts on surface active sites of g-C(3)N(4)via photodeposition triggering the splitting of water for the simultaneous evolution of H(2) and O(2) gases in a stoichiometric ratio of 2 : 1, irradiated with light, without using any sacrificial reagents. The photocatalyst was stable for 510 hours of reaction.