Hierarchical structures assembled by two-dimensional (2D) nanosheets could inherit the characteristics of nanosheets and acquire additional advantages from the unique secondary architectures, which would have important influences on the photocatalytic properties of semiconductor nanomaterials. In this work, we successfully synthesized Ca(II) doped beta-In2S3 hierarchical structures stacked by thin nanosheets by a simple solution chemical process. The effects of reaction temperature and Ca2+ concentration on the size and morphology of the products were systematically investigated. The photocatalytic applications of the beta-In2S3 hierarchical structures were evaluated for hydrogen production and degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) under visible light irradiation (lambda > 420 nm). The beta-In2S3 hierarchical structures showed promising activity towards photocatalytic hydrogen production (145.0 gmol g(-1) h(-1)) and RhB solution (1 x 10(-5) M) was completely degraded within 100 min under visible light irradiation. (C) 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.