Ultralong one-dimensional (1D) nanostructures including nanowires or nanotubes have been extensively studied because of their widespread applications in many fields. Although a lot of methods have been reported to prepare In2S3 nanotubes, approaching these nanotubes through one-pot solution synthesis is still extremely difficult, probably because of the intrinsic isotropic crystal growth characteristic of In2S3. In this article, we demonstrated a self-assembly approach for hydrothermal synthesis of In2S3 nanotubes/graphene composites, which contain ultralong (up to 10 μm) In2S3 nanotubes on graphene substrate. The influence of several important synthetic parameters on the final products has been systematically investigated. Importantly, the as-prepared In2S3 nanotubes/graphene composites can be easily cast on FTO to form a film, which can be used as a counter electrode. Our research indicates that the as-fabricated counter electrode exhibits excellent electrocatalytic activity toward the iodide species (I-/I3-) reduction reaction and very high energy conversion efficiency (8.01%) in dye-sensitized solar cells.
Keywords: In2S3; dye-sensitized solar cells; electrocatalytic activity; graphene; nanotube.