Interface Modulation of MoS2 /Metal Oxide Heterostructures for Efficient Hydrogen Evolution Electrocatalysis

Jue Hu; Chengxu Zhang; Yizhen Zhang; Baomin Yang; Qianglong Qi; Mingzi Sun; Futing Zi; Michael K H Leung; Bolong Huang

doi:10.1002/smll.202002212

Interface Modulation of MoS₂ /Metal Oxide Heterostructures for Efficient Hydrogen Evolution Electrocatalysis

Small. 2020 Jul;16(28):e2002212. doi: 10.1002/smll.202002212. Epub 2020 Jun 8.

Authors

Jue Hu¹, Chengxu Zhang¹, Yizhen Zhang², Baomin Yang¹, Qianglong Qi¹, Mingzi Sun³, Futing Zi¹, Michael K H Leung^{2

4}, Bolong Huang³

Affiliations

¹ Faculty of Science, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, 650093, China.
² Ability R&D Energy Research Centre, School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, 999077, China.
³ Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, 999077, China.
⁴ Research Centre for the Oceans and Human Health, The City University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Research Institute, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518000, China.

PMID: 32510832
DOI: 10.1002/smll.202002212

Abstract

Developing efficient earth-abundant MoS₂ based hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) electrocatalysts is important but challenging due to the sluggish kinetics in alkaline media. Herein, a strategy to fabricate a high-performance MoS₂ based HER electrocatalyst by modulating interface electronic structure via metal oxides is developed. All the heterostructure catalysts present significant improvement of HER electrocatalytic activities, demonstrating a positive role of metal oxides decoration in promoting the rate-limited water dissociation step for the HER mechanism in alkaline media. The as-obtained MoS₂ /Ni₂ O₃ H catalyst exhibits a low overpotential of 84 mV at 10 mA cm^-2 and small charge-transfer resistance of 1.5 Ω in 1 m KOH solution. The current density (217 mA cm^-2 ) at the overpotential of 200 mV is about 2 and 24 times higher than that of commercial Pt/C and bare MoS₂ , respectively. Additionally, these MoS₂ /metal oxides heterostructure catalysts show outstanding long-term stability under a harsh chronopotentiometry test. Theoretical calculations reveal the varied sensitivity of 3d-band in different transition oxides, in which Ni-3d of Ni₂ O₃ H is evidently activated to achieve fast electron transfer for HER as the electron-depletion center. Both electronic properties and energetic reaction trends confirm the high electroactivity of MoS₂ /Ni₂ O₃ H in the adsorption and dissociation of H₂ O for highly efficient HER in alkaline media.

Keywords: MoS2/metal oxides heterostructures; alkaline environment; hydrogen evolution reaction; interface modulation; reaction kinetics.

Abstract

Grants and funding