MoS2 coating on different carbonaceous materials: Comparison of electrochemical properties and hydrogen evolution reaction performance

Designing and manufacturing active, sustainable, and affordable materials for hydrogen production and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is critical to the successful launch of hydrogen-based alternative energy technologies. Transition metal dichalcogenides such as molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), known as Pt-Like in the HER process, are considered as a suitable and inexpensive alternative to platinum. In this research, MoS2 was synthesized by hydrothermal method and then hybridized with carbonaceous materials such as reduced graphene oxide (rGO), hollow carbon nanosphere (HCNs), single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), and multi walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). HER process in the presence of these hybrids, as catalysts, was studied. The results showed that the MoS2/rGO catalyst with a Tafel slope of 44 mV dec(-1) and an over-potential of 70 mV is the most suitable catalyst. Also, MoS2/MWCNT with Tafel slope of 73 mV dec(-1) and 190 mV over-potential showed a lower HER potential compared to other hybrids. It seems that the uniform dispersion of MoS2 nano particles on rGO increases both active sites and electrical conductivity than other carbonaceous materials, which leads to better results in HER process compared to other hybrid catalysts.