Researchers at Kanazawa University have developed a scanning electrochemical cell imaging technique that reveals how nanoscale structural features affect the catalytic activity of MoS2 monolayers for hydrogen evolution reactions. The development of optimized catalysts is needed to take advantage of the potential of water electrolysis. This splitting of water into component elements could be a sustainable means of energy storage.
The researcher's work sheds light on the role of scanning electrochemical cell microscopy for engineering the catalytic properties of these 2D materials.The scanning electrochemical microscopy has proved useful in investigations of the catalytic activity of MoS2 monolayers and the metallic versus semiconducting properties of different microstructural phases of MoS2 on HER catalysis.
In their scanning electrochemical cell microscopy study, researchers Takahashi, Chen, Matsue and colleagues used a nanopipette as a moveable electrochemical cell to probe the electrochemical activity on the surface instead of an ultramicroelectrode. Their study concluded it is possible to evaluate the local HER activity of catalytic samples using scanning electrochemical cell microscopy and suggest this technique can be an optimal tool for engineering the phase and structure of 2D transition metal dichalcogenide samples for applications in catalysis.