Synthesis of metal sulfides via ionic liquid-mediated assembly strategy and their photocatalytic degradation of dyes in water

Abstract

Metal sulfide nanomaterials have been extensively studied due to their attractive applications in various fields. Although various synthetic approaches have been developed, it remains a great challenge to establish a universal and green method for fabricating metal sulfide nanomaterials with tailorable structures (e.g., shapes and sizes). Here we report a ionothermal strategy to synthesize metal sulfide particles with diverse components and controllable architectures. Transition metal sulfide (TMS) nanostructures such as hierarchical Cu7S4 microspheres, ZnS and CdS nanoparticles, PdS polyhedrons, and Bi2S3 nanorods have been successfully synthesized with metal salts and amino acid-based ionic liquids, [TBP][Cys] (tetrabutyl-phosphonium cation and L-cysteine anion). We unveiled the structures, optical properties, and formation mechanism of TMSs. As a typical application of the as-prepared TMSs, the hierarchically structured Cu7S4 nanocrystals enable high-performance photocatalysis degradation of dyes (e.g., methylene blue) in water. Our study not only provides new insights into the ionic liquid-mediated assembly strategy but also achieves an efficient catalyst for photocatalytic degradation.