Ultrathin VS₂ nanodiscs for highly stable electro catalytic hydrogen evolution reaction

Recently, two-dimensional (2D) metal chalcogenides are gaining considerable attention for its potential employment in energy storage, catalysis, electronic, and sensing devices. Vanadium disulfide (VS₂) from the 2D family gathers intensive attention for its application as promising electrocatalysts in hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Here, we present a simple, cost-effective hydrothermal technique for the synthesis of nanodiscs (NDs)-like VS₂ structures. They were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and evaluated as electrochemical catalysts in hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). NDs-like structures made up of thin nanoplates with active sites were found to play a huge role on their electrochemical properties. The prepared VS₂ NDs show highly efficient electro catalytic performances with a Tafel slope of 79 mV dec⁻¹. In addition, the prepared VS₂ NDs exhibited high stability in acidic solution without any sign for degradation even after 500 continuous potential cycles. The excellent HER performance and long-term durability suggest the VS₂ NDs to serve as an promising and inexpensive HER electro catalyst.