MoS2-CuCo2S4 nanosheets with a honeycomb structure formed on Ni foam: An efficient electrocatalyst for hydrogen evolution reaction

Abstract

The physical, chemical, and electrocatalytic properties of conventional single-component electrocatalysts developed for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) no longer match the needs of many commercial applications. This necessitates for the creation of more sophisticated and effective electrocatalysts for the HER. In this study, MoS2-CuCo2S4 was loaded onto NF using a simple two-step hydrothermal method. In the resultant NF/MoS2-CuCo2S4 material, CuCo2S4 offers a lot of active sites to support vertically arranged MoS2 nanosheets, thereby decreasing their agglomeration. Moreover, the heterogeneous structure formed between CuCo2S4 and MoS2 facilitates charge transfer and exposes the active sites for HER, further improving the electrochemical hydrogen evolution performance of the heterostructured electrocatalyst. In a 1.0 M KOH solution, the synthesized NF/MoS2-CuCo2S4 nanosheet catalyst has outstanding electrocatalytic efficacy, with an overpotential as low as 67 mV at a current density of 10 mA·cm−2.