Fabrication of 3D ordered mesoporous MoS₂/C composite with few-layered MoS₂ for electrochemical hydrogen evolution

In this work, a 3D ordered mesoporous structure MoS₂/C composite with few-layered MoS₂ was synthesized by liquid phase nanocasting method, using SBA-15 as hard template, sucrose as carbon source and ammonium tetrathiomolybdate (ATTM) as MoS₂ precursor. The limiting effect of amorphous carbon makes thin MoS₂ slices evenly dispersed, and avoids occurrence of MoS₂ agglomeration, resulting in the exposure of a large number of MoS₂ edges as active sites. The 3D ordered mesoporous structure of the catalyst provides high specific surface areas and ensures transport channels for material and electron for electrochemical HER. As a result, the composite demonstrates efficient HER activity with an overpotential of 165 mV at current density of 10 mA/cm², and a Tafel slope of 91.1 mV/dec under acidic conditions. This study provides a basis for constructing 3D HER catalyst with high specific surface area and few-layered MoS₂ uniformly dispersed.