Mn-Dependent Morphology and Structure of SnS2 Nanosheets and the Photocatalytic Performance

Transition metal dichalcogenides have potential application in photocatalysis. Here, we synthesized Mn-(un) doped tin disulfide materials for photocatalytic degradation by hydrothermal method. The XRD, SEM, TEM, EDS, XPS, BET, UV-Vis and PL were employed to analyze their structures, morphologies, surface chemical state and photoelectronic properties. The results show that as-prepared tin disulfide displays hexagonal morphology of nanotablets, and Mn-doped tin disulfide consists of quasi-hexagonal thin nanotablets that are stacked to form wrinkle layers. The doped tin disulfide has low bandgap energy, fast electron transport, larger photocurrent response and separation efficiency of photogenerated electron-hole pairs. The results of photocatalysis indicate that the Mn-doped tin disulfide exhibits high photocatalytic activity and fast degradation capacity with more than 99 % degradation rate for methyl violet within 90 min under visible light irradiation. Notably, Mn-doped tin disulfide has also high degradation rate for rhodamine B. This strategy for introducing Mn in tin disulfide provides guides for morphology control and designing multifunctional photocatalyst for wide application.