Issue 4, 2025

Enhancing electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution via engineering unsaturated electronic structures in MoS2

Abstract

The search for efficient, earth-abundant electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) has identified unsaturated molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) as a leading candidate. This review synthesises recent advancements in the engineering of MoS2 to enhance its electrocatalytic properties. It focuses on strategies for designing an unsaturated electronic structure on metal catalytic centers and their role in boosting the efficiency of the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). It also considers how to optimize the electronic structures of unsaturated MoS2 for enhanced catalytic performance. This review commences with an examination of the fundamental crystal structure of MoS2; it elucidates the classical unsaturated electron configurations and the intrinsic factors that contribute to such electronic structures. Furthermore, it introduces popular strategies for constructing unsaturated electronic structures at the atomic level, such as nanostructure engineering, surface chemical modification and interlayer coupling engineering. It also discusses the challenges and future research directions in the study of MoS2 electronic structures, with the aim of broadening their application in sustainable hydrogen production.

Graphical abstract: Enhancing electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution via engineering unsaturated electronic structures in MoS2

Article information

Article type
Review Article
Submitted
29 Oct 2024
Accepted
17 Dec 2024
First published
18 Dec 2024
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY license

Chem. Sci., 2025,16, 1597-1616

Enhancing electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution via engineering unsaturated electronic structures in MoS2

Q. Zhou, H. Hu, Z. Chen, X. Ren and D. Ma, Chem. Sci., 2025, 16, 1597 DOI: 10.1039/D4SC07309F

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

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