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Enormous potential loss and sluggish kinetics of the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) limit the practical implementation of water electrolyser systems. We attempt to address these technical challenges through the synthesis of cobalt-chromium-layered double hydroxide nanosheets (CoCr LDH) on oxidized-carbon nanotube (O-CNT) backbones as efficient OER electrocatalysts. Microscopic and elemental distribution analysis suggests that interconnected sheets of CoCr LDH masks over O-CNTs. We tested various compositions of the CoCr LDH_O-CNT hybrid (by varying the molar ratios of Co and Cr) along with the weight adjustment between CoCr LDH and O-CNTs to obtain an optimal OER activity. Due to the synergistic effect, the CoCr-LDH(3:1)_O-CNT (2:1) exhibits the lowest overpotential of 290 mV at 10 mA cm-2 with a corresponding smaller Tafel slope of 42 mV dec-1, which outperforms the other tested materials. The catalytically active site of Co2+ is boosted by Cr3+ as a charge transfer site owing to the spin-spin coupling between 3d7 of Co and 3d3 of Cr3+, which is evidenced by electron paramagnetic resonance results. Furthermore, the mildly oxidized carbon nanotubes offer the conducting channels to CoCr-LDH for faster charge transfer during OER. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) are unique layered materials with exotic properties. So, examining their structures holds tremendous importance. 2H-MoSe 2 (analogous to MoS 2 ; Gr. 6 TMDC) is a crucial optoelectronic material studied extensively using Raman spectroscopy. In this regard, low-frequency Raman (LFR) spectroscopy can probe this material's structure as it reveals distinct vibration modes. Here, we focus on understanding the microstructural evolution of different 2H-MoSe 2 morphologies and their layers using LFR scattering. We grew phase-pure 2H-MoSe 2 (with variable microstructures) directly on a Mo foil using a two-furnace ambient-pressure chemical vapor deposition (CVD) system by carefully controlling the process parameters. We analyzed the layers of exfoliated flakes after ultrasonication and drop-cast 2H-MoSe 2 of different layer thicknesses by choosing different concentrations of 2H-MoSe 2 solutions. Further detailed analyses of the respective LFR regions confirm the presence of newly identified Raman signals for the 2H-MoSe 2 nanosheets drop-cast on Raman-grade CaF 2 . Our results show that CaF 2 is an appropriate Raman-enhancing substrate compared to Si/SiO 2 as it presents new LFR modes of 2H-MoSe 2 . Therefore, CaF 2 substrates are a promising medium to characterize in detail other TMDCs using LFR spectroscopy., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2022 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

We report a facile and robust room-temperature NO 2 sensor fabricated using bi- and multi-layered 2H variant of tungsten di-selenide (2H-WSe 2 ) nanosheets, exhibiting high sensing characteristics. A simple liquid-assisted exfoliation of 2H-WSe 2 , prepared using ambient pressure chemical vapor deposition, allows smooth integration of these nanosheets on transducers. Three sensor batches are fabricated by modulating the total number of layers (L) obtained from the total number of droplets from a homogeneous 2H-WSe 2 dispersion, such as ∼2L, ∼5-6L, and ∼13-17L, respectively. The gas-sensing attributes of 2H-WSe 2 nanosheets are investigated thoroughly. Room temperature (RT) experiments show that these devices are specifically tailored for NO 2 detection. 2L WSe 2 nanosheets deliver the best rapid response compared to ∼5-6L or ∼13-17L. The response of 2L WSe 2 at RT is 250, 328, and 361% to 2, 4, and 6 ppm NO 2 , respectively. The sensor showed nearly the same response toward low NO 2 concentration even after 9 months of testing, confirming its remarkable long-term stability. A selectivity study, performed at three working temperatures (RT, 100, and 150 °C), shows high selectivity at 150 and 100 °C. Full selectivity toward NO 2 at RT confirms that 2H-WSe 2 nanosheet-based sensors are ideal candidates for NO 2 gas detection.

We report a facile two-furnace APCVD synthesis of 2H-WSe 2 . A systematic study of the process parameters is performed to show the formation of the phase-pure material. Extensive characterization of the bulk and exfoliated material confirm that 2H-WSe 2 is layered (i.e., 2D). X-ray diffraction (XRD) confirms the phase, while high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HRSEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) clarify the morphology of the material. Focused ion beam scanning electron microscopy (FIB-SEM) estimates the depth of the 2H-WSe 2 formed on W foil to be around 5-8 μm, and Raman/UV-vis measurements prove the quality of the exfoliated 2H-WSe 2 . Studies on the redox processes of lithium-ion batteries (LiBs) show an increase in capacity up to 500 cycles. On prolonged cycling, the discharge capacity up to the 50th cycle at 250 mA/g of the material shows a stable value of 550 mAh/g. These observations indicate that exfoliated 2H-WSe 2 has promising applications as an LiB electrode material., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (Copyright © 2020 American Chemical Society.)