Enhanced Exfoliation Effect of Solid Auxiliary Agent On the Synthesis of Biofunctionalized MoS2 Using Grindstone Chemistry

Mass production and commercial availability are prerequisites for the viability and wide application of MoS2. Here, we demonstrate enhanced grindstone chemistry for a one-step synthesis of biofunctionalized MoS2. By adding a SiO2 auxiliary agent the exfoliation efficiency increases from 16.23% to 58.59% and a rapid and high-yield exfoliation of MoS2 is seen. SiO2 exhibits a fragmentation effect, which reduces the lateral size and facilitates the exfoliation of MoS2, thus inducing a high-efficient paradigm in the top-down fabrication of biofunctionalized MoS2 nanosheets. The as-prepared MoS2-chitosan (MoS2-CS) nanosheets display complete disaggregation and homogeneous dispersion, as well as a high content of chitosan (ca. 20 wt%). As a proof-of-concept application, the MoS2-CS nanosheets act as a biosorbent for Pb-II removal, exhibiting a good adsorption capacity and recyclability. This green and facile enhanced grindstone chemistry with minimal use of organic solvents and high-throughput efficiency can be extended to the fabrication of other biocompatible inorganic 2D analogues for a variety of applications.