LAUSR

Abstract Heat treatment and/or chemical functionalization ACF-based porous carbon textiles with urea/thiourea resulted in highly heterogeneous materials with a diverse porosity and mechanical strength. The materials were photosensitive in visible light and a generated photocurrent was linked to the effects of the specific surface chemistry and the existence of sp2 domains. Light exposure led to the reduction of S- and N-containing groups by photogenerated electrons and to oxidation of some carbon atoms by photogenerated holes and chemisorbed oxygen. A photocurrent generation was tested on the samples impregnated with Methylene Blue to explore how the carbon textiles' surface features affect the integrity of a dye. A marked blockage of the porosity and a surface alteration resulted in a decrease in photosensitivity. Among all samples, the one modified with urea showed the highest photoactivity, indicating the important role of a surface nitrogen environment.