Carbon-coated MoSe2/Mo2CTx (MXene) heterostructure for efficient hydrogen evolution

[Display omitted] •Three-dimensional network-like MoSe2/Mo2CTx@C composite material was successfully fabricated.•Anchored growth of MoSe2 nanosheets on Mo2CTx effectively prevented aggregation of MoSe2.•Synergistic effect of MoSe2, Mo2CTx and carbon layer contributed to the superior HER activity. Herein, a mesh carbon-coated MoSe2/Mo2CTx hybrid material (MoSe2/Mo2CTx@C) is proposed as an effective catalyst for electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). On one hand, the highly conductive Mo2CTx substrate enhanced charge transfer ability and effectively prevented the agglomeration of MoSe2 nanosheets to expose abundant active sites. On the other hand, the carbon coating layer further improved the conductivity and effectively prevented Mo2CTx from being oxidized in the environment. Consequently, the unique MoSe2/Mo2CTx@C hybrid material exhibited excellent HER performance. Specifically, the MoSe2/Mo2CTx@C catalyst only required an overpotential of 108.3 mV to reach a current density of 10 mA cm−2 and displayed excellent durability under long-term cycling in acidic solution. This research highlights the potential applications of MXene-based composite materials in the energy field.