Identifying the single active site in MoS2-based hydrogen evolution electrocatalyst by XAFS technique

摘要

The strong metal-support interactions endow the single-atom catalysts outstanding behavior in water splitting. However, accurately characterizing the coordination and electronic structure of the active sites is still a challenge. Here, we report the synthesis of atomically dispersed Co sites anchored on the MoS2 nanosheet and discover its superior performance in the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). The X-ray absorption spectra at both Co K-edge and L-edge reveals the coordination environment and valence state of the Co single atom, and density functional theory calculations confirm that the active sites are S atoms bonding with Co single atoms. This study suggests the promising potential of Co-1/MoS2 as a hydrogen evolution electrocatalyst.