Two-dimensional (2D) transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are highly fascinating, efficacious, and low-cost active electrodes for energy storage and water splitting. Molybdenum selenide (MoSe2) is a fascinating 2D TMD system because of its plentiful active selenium edge sites, however, its reported outputs are deficient due to their inactive facet edges and poor conductivity. Herein, we tackled the key issues by engineering hybrid composites using a molybdenum carbide (Mo2C) inserted MoSe2 matrix, in the first time. For this approach, a simple one-step chemical reaction method was employed to synthesize the highly active MoSe2-Mo2C hybrid nanoarrays for energy storage and electrocatalytic water splitting applications. Microscopic analyses clearly showed the formation of Mo2C embedded MoSe2 hybrid nanoarray structured morphology composed of nanosized spherical grains with plenty of active sites. Improved surface area, modified morphology, highly conductive nature, and abundant active sites were obviously confirmed for the MoSe2-Mo2C hybrid. Interestingly, MoSe2-Mo2C hybrid nanoarrays exposed excellent capacitance with superior rate capability behavior and outstanding hydrogen evolution activity with their low overpotential, small Tafel slope and high current density.

Engineering the novel MoSe2-Mo2C hybrid nanoarray electrodes for energy storage and water splitting applications

Nanocellulose/nanocarbon composites are newly emerging smart hybrid materials containing cellulose nanoparticles, such as nanofibrils and nanocrystals, and carbon nanoparticles, such as "classical" carbon allotropes (fullerenes, graphene, nanotubes and nanodiamonds), or other carbon nanostructures (carbon nanofibers, carbon quantum dots, activated carbon and carbon black). The nanocellulose component acts as a dispersing agent and homogeneously distributes the carbon nanoparticles in an aqueous environment. Nanocellulose/nanocarbon composites can be prepared with many advantageous properties, such as high mechanical strength, flexibility, stretchability, tunable thermal and electrical conductivity, tunable optical transparency, photodynamic and photothermal activity, nanoporous character and high adsorption capacity. They are therefore promising for a wide range of industrial applications, such as energy generation, storage and conversion, water purification, food packaging, construction of fire retardants and shape memory devices. They also hold great promise for biomedical applications, such as radical scavenging, photodynamic and photothermal therapy of tumors and microbial infections, drug delivery, biosensorics, isolation of various biomolecules, electrical stimulation of damaged tissues (e.g., cardiac, neural), neural and bone tissue engineering, engineering of blood vessels and advanced wound dressing, e.g., with antimicrobial and antitumor activity. However, the potential cytotoxicity and immunogenicity of the composites and their components must also be taken into account.

https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/10/2/196/pdf

Applications of Nanocellulose/Nanocarbon Composites: Focus on Biotechnology and Medicine.

Synthesis of Wafer-Scale Graphene with Chemical Vapor Deposition for Electronic Device Applications

Co, Mo2C encapsulated in N-doped carbon nanofiber as self-supported electrocatalyst for hydrogen evolution reaction

Water splitting for production of hydrogen as a clean energy alternative to fossil fuel has received much attention, but it is still a tough challenge to synthesize electrocatalysts with controllable bonding and charge distribution. In this work, ultrafine S-doped RuP nanoparticles homogeneously embedded in a N, P, and S-codoped carbon sheet (S-RuP@NPSC) is synthesized by pyrolysis of poly(cyclotriphosphazene-co-4,4'-sulfonyldiphenol) (PZS) as the source of C/N/S/P. The bondings between Ru and N, P, S in PZS are regulated to synthesize RuS2 (800 °C) and S-RuP (900 °C) by different calcination temperatures. The S-RuP@NPSC with low Ru loading of 0.8 wt% with abundant active catalytic sites possesses high utilization of Ru, the mass catalytic activity is 22.88 times than 20 wt% Pt/C with the overpotential of 250 mV. Density functional theory calculation confirms that the surface Ru (-0.18 eV) and P (0.05 eV) are catalytic active sites for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), and the according charge redistribution of Ru is regulated by S and P with reverse electronegativity and electron-donor property to induce a synergistically enhanced reactivity toward the HER. This work provides a rational method to regulate the bonding and charge distribution of Ru-based electrocatalysts by reacting macromolecules with multielement of C/N/S/P with Ru.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/advs.202001526

Charge Redistribution Caused by S,P Synergistically Active Ru Endows an Ultrahigh Hydrogen Evolution Activity of S-Doped RuP Embedded in N,P,S-Doped Carbon.

Renkun Li

Papers

N-Doped Mo2C Nanobelts/Graphene Nanosheets Bonded with Hydroxy Nanocellulose as Flexible and Editable Electrode for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction