Ultrathin hexagonal SnS2 nanosheets coupled with g-C3N4 nanosheets as 2D/2D heterojunction photocatalysts toward high photocatalytic activity.

In this work, we present the 2D/2D type of heterojunction photocatalysts fabricated by horizontal loading ultrathin hexagonal SnS 2 nanosheets on g-C 3 N 4 nanosheets through a facile ultrasonic dispersion method. The sheet-like structures of these two nanomaterials induce a large contact region in the heterojunction interface, as evidenced by electron microscopic analyses. By taking advantage of this feature, the as-fabricated SnS 2 /g-C 3 N 4 heterojunction nanosheets exhibit considerable improvement on the photocatalytic activities for the degradation of organic dyes and phenols under visible light irradiation as compared to pure g-C 3 N 4 and SnS 2 nanosheets. In particular, the optimal heterojunction nanosheet with 5.0 wt.% SnS 2 shows the apparent rate constant of ∼0.2 min −1 for the RhB photodegradation, which is higher than that of pure g-C 3 N 4 and SnS 2 nanosheets by a factor of 4 and 8, respectively. Further studies by steady-state and transient photoluminescence spectroscopy indicate that the photosynergistic effect of SnS 2 /g-C 3 N 4 heterojunction can remarkably enhance the photoinduced interfacial charge transfer, thereby increasing the charge separation during the photocatalytic reaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]