Bi-functional role of high charge mobility with 2D/2D interactions for effective PEC and visible photocatalysis in NiO/MoS 2 nanocomposites

• Published in: New journal of chemistry 2023-10, Vol.47 (39), p.18199-18212
• Main Authors: Mehboob, Maria, Haider, Rida Shahzadi, Sajjad, Shamaila, Leghari, Sajjad Ahmed Khan, Jamila, Ghulam Sughra, Amin, Mohammed A., Ibrahim, Mohamed M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1144-0546; 1369-9261
• DOI: 10.1039/D3NJ01408H

Highly efficient 2D/2D layered heterostructure of nickel oxide (NiO) and molybdenum sulphide (MoS 2 ) has been fabricated for the photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting and degradation of Bromophenol Blue (BPB) under visible light. The XRD spectra confirm mixed characteristic peaks of MoS 2 and NiO in the nanocomposite. SEM displays flower-like patterns of pure and composite material with the 2D nanosheets layer structure. The band gap reduction (2.25–1.72 eV) is due to the incorporation of NiO in MoS 2 for visible light harvesting. TEM confirms the homogeneous distribution of 2D/2D nanosheets. The excellent interfacial coupling in strong 2D/2D interactions boost the electro and photocatalytic activities. 15.0% NiO showed excellent PEC activity toward OER with maximum photocurrent density of 1.57 mA cm −2 , which influenced the overall water splitting at lower potential, ensuring visible photoresponse. The maximum photodegradation performance for highly toxic BPB was achieved by the photocatalyst, which contains 15.0 wt% NiO in NiO/MoS 2 composite. It displays the highest conversion efficiency (∼87.0%) for BPB owing to exposed active sites via Mo–Ni–S linkages. Defects in NiO/MoS 2 offer favorable reaction dynamics to PEC OER, which are helpful in tuning the band potentials.