A comparative study of the photocatalytic properties of CuS nanotubes and nanoparticles by hydrothermal method

Copper sulfide nanotubes and nanoparticles have been successfully synthesized by a hydrothermal process at 160 °C for 10 h, employing copper chloride (CuCl2·2H2O) and thioacetamide as starting materials, polyethylene glycol 400 as surfactant. The products are characterized by X-ray power diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, UV–vis spectroscopy and fluorescence spectroscopy, respectively. The results show that both CuS nanotubes and nanoparticles belong to the hexagonal phase CuS and the morphologies of the products are greatly influenced by the surfactant, reactant molar concentration and reactant molar ratio. The photocatalytic properties of the CuS nanotubes and nanoparticles have been evaluated via photocatalytic degradation of organic dye and reduction of aqueous Cr (VI) under UV light irradiation. The CuS nanotubes with smooth inside and coarse outside present higher photocatalytic performance than the CuS nanoparticles.