Abstract: Ultra-fine WS₂ powders were synthesized via an improved solid reaction method from mixed tungsten and sulfur powders with different excessive sulfur coefficients(ESC),followed by the reactions in N₂ or Ar atmosphere at different temperatures.Phase composition,morphology and particle size of the resulting powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction(XRD),transmission electron microscopy(TEM) and laser diffraction method.Effects of the reaction temperature and the excessive sulfur coefficient(ESC) on the phase composition and the morphology of the resulting powders were also investigated.Furthermore,W-S powders were mixed by high energy ball milling to investigate the effects of raw materials on the performance of the synthesized WS₂ powders.XRD results show that pure and hexagonal tungsten disulfides are obtained at a temperature of 650℃ and an ESC of 2.0 for the ordinary blended W-S powder mixes, but only an ESC of 1.5 is needed for the high energy ball milled W-S powder mixes at the same reaction temperature.The WS₂ powder synthesized have an ultrafine particle size of 0.1~0.4 μm with a granular particle shape.It was also shown that the atmosphere has an important influence on the synthesis reaction.