Facile hydrothermal synthesis of 3D flower‐like La‐MoS₂nanostructure for photocatalytic hydrogen energy production

Abstract

Summary Three‐dimensional (3D) flower‐like MoS2 nanostructures were prepared via facile and cost‐effective hydrothermal method by varying hydrothermal temperature (180°C, 200°C, and 220°C) and reaction time (6, 12, 24, and 36 hours). The results demonstrated that the sample prepared at 200°C for 24 hours have 3D flower‐like MoS2 nanostructure (SEM) with hexagonal phase structure (XRD). Moreover, this novel photocatalyst was also modified by lanthanum element (La3+) with varying La3+ atomic ratio (0.5%, 1%, 2%, 3%, and 4%). Interestingly, the La3+ incorporation into MoS2 has good effect on the specific surface area and optical properties of MoS2 photocatalyst. Furthermore, the flower‐like 3%LaMoS2 nanostructure photocatalyst exhibited 5.2‐times higher efficiency for H2 evolution via water splitting as compared with pure MoS2 under the same conditions. This superior efficiency of the photocatalyst for H2 production arises from the positive synergistic effect between MoS2 and lanthanum in the composite photocatalyst due to higher surface area, enhanced light absorption, and inhibited electron‐holes pair recombination. This study presents an expensive photocatalyst for energy production via water spitting.

Recent Progress and Approaches on Transition Metal Chalcogenides for Hydrogen Production

“…This value is close to the bandgap energy of 1.8 eV for a monolayer of MoS 2 [110]. However, 3% La-MoS 2 showed a considerably small bandgap energy of 1.5 eV due to La 3+ doping, which significantly improved the light absorption properties of MoS 2 [109].…”

Graphene‐supported LaFeO 3 for photocatalytic hydrogen energy production

“…Furthermore, photocatalytic oxidation can also be carried out in natural sunlight or under solar light irradiation. 5,[7][8][9] As a result, hydrogen production by photocatalytic oxidation from wastewaters to convert solar energy into chemical energy is one of the most promising ways of solving energy crisis and environmental pollution problems.…”

Molybdenum sulfide‐based supercapacitors: From synthetic, bibliometric, and qualitative perspectives

“…4,125 Both techniques are analogs to each other as they are usually conducted under high temperature and pressure in a sealed vessel (bomb or autoclave), except that hydrothermal, which uses water as the solvent source while the solvothermal employ organic solvents. 126,127 Owing to its simplicity and wide-ranging applicability, the hydrothermal method has attracted great attention for the synthesis of MoS 2. 125,128,129 For instance, Rao et al employed a hydrothermal method to synthesized MoS 2 nanosheets at a high temperature of 453 K using MoO 3 and KSCN as the Mo and sulfur sources, respectively.…”