WS2-doped CuCo2S4 hollow nano-prisms as high-efficiency Pt-free bifunctional electrocatalysts for dye-sensitized solar cell and acid hydrogen evolution reaction

Hollow structured nano-materials based on polynary metallic sulfides receive intensive investigation for new energy technologies such as dye-sensitized solar cell and electrochemical hydrogen production because of their abundant reserves, low cost, well-defined void space, and superior electrochemical activity. In this work, WS2-doped CuCo2S4 (CuCo2S4/WS2) hollow nano-prisms were successfully synthesized and served as extremely feasible bifunctional electrochemical catalysts for solar cell and high-efficiency hydrogen production. In detail, copper-cobalt acetate hydroxide nano-prism precursors were used as templates to react with different mass of (NH4)(2)WS4, and then proceeded to a further calcination process. Specifically, the surface morphologies of the hollow nano-prisms could be effectively controlled by changing the mass ratio between the Cu-Co nano-prism precursors and (NH4)(2)WS4. Due to the stable structures with proper amount of WS2 nanoparticles attaching to the surface, synergistic effect, abundant active sites, and large specific surface area, CuCo2S4/WS2-1/1 revealed an excellent power conversion efficiency of 9.50% comparing with Pt (8.32%) for solar cell and displayed fairly low overpotential of 73.6 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm(-2) and quite small Tafel slope of 54.7 mV dec(-1) as electrocatalyst for hydrogen production in 0.5 M H2SO4.

Automated summary

Hollow nano-prisms based on polynary metallic sulfides have great potential as bifunctional electrochemical catalysts for solar cells and high-efficiency hydrogen production. The synthesized CuCo2S4/WS2 hollow nano-prisms exhibited excellent power conversion efficiency for solar cells and low overpotential for hydrogen production, making them a promising alternative to platinum.