The compound crystallizes in the cadmium iodide motif, with the Sn(IV) situated in "octahedral holes' defined by six sulfide centers.
[7] The compound precipitates as a brown solid upon the addition of H2S to solutions of tin(IV) species.
The material also reacts with sulfide salts to give a series of thiostannates with the formula [SnS2]m[S]2n−n.
A simplified equation for this depolymerization reaction is Tin (IV) sulfide has various uses in electrochemistry.
Forming a membrane with SnS2 and carbon nanofibers can potentially allow for the reduction of certain impurities in water, an example of which is hexavalent chromium.