Synthesis of Photocorrosion-Resistant VS4-MoS2-rGO based Nanocomposite with Efficient Photoelectrochemical Water-Splitting Activity

For increasing demands of clean and sustainable energy, two-dimensional transition-metal dichalcogenides (2D-TMDs) have attracted great attention. Electrocatalysis, photoelectrochemical water splitting and photovoltaic activities are considered a suitable route for fulfilling this demand. Here, we have used hydrothermally synthesized vanadium sulfide (VS4) and molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) composite heterostructures for photocatalytic based renewable energy production. The catalytic activity of VS4 observed for the water splitting process makes it a potential candidate for the applications. At the same time, it suffers from photogenerated charge recombination and photocorrosion which limits its catalytic performances. The key motivation of this work was to diminish the charge recombination via appropriate composite formation with MoS2 as well as to minimize the photocorrosion of resulting materials with the support of reduced graphene oxide (rGO). Eventually, separation of photogenerated charge carriers and anti-photocorrosion property of the VS4-MoS2-rGO based composite leads to its efficient catalyst for photocatalytic water splitting applications. The resulting composite shows 4.5 times higher catalytic activity and stability than bare constituent materials.

Automated summary

This study focuses on the use of composite heterostructures of vanadium sulfide and molybdenum disulfide for photocatalytic renewable energy production. The appropriate composite formation helps mitigate charge recombination and minimize photocorrosion, leading to improved catalytic activity and stability.