Preparation of layered MoS₂/Graphene films and their electrocatalytic performance of hydrogen generation

MoS₂/Graphene electrocatalysts which were used for water-electrolytic hydrogen making were synthesized using a hydrothermal method among which NH₂CSNH₂ (thiourea) was served as both the source of sulfur and the reductive agent. MoS₂/Graphene films prepared on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) by spin coating method were applied for performance test of electrocatalytic water splitting. The study shows that the activity of MoS₂ toward hydrogen evolution reaction improves as high as nearly 100% after coupling with graphene. The high catalytic activity of MoS₂/Graphene was attributed to two aspects: firstly, the selective growth of layered MoS₂ on graphene through chemical coupling afforded an abundance of catalytic active sites on MoS₂ edges. Secondly, as a good conductive substrate, the graphene sheets can accelerate the electron transfer. The 12 layered MoS₂/Graphene catalysts achieved the highest efficiency toward hydrogen evolution reaction with a current density up to-4.5 mA/cm² at the overpotential of 0.2 V and an onset potential of 0.085 V in 0.5 mol/L H₂SO₄ solution. Hence, as a substitute for Pt family noble metal toward hydrogen evolution reaction, the layered MoS₂/Graphene has broad application prospects.