Two-dimensional nanostructured materials for electrochemical and photoelectrochemical green hydrogen generation application

Hydrogen is considered a clean and sustainable energy carrier due to its high energy content and ability to produce water as the only by-product upon combustion. Green hydrogen production via water splitting is a promising route to generate hydrogen from renewable sources such as solar, wind, and hydropower. Two-dimensional (2D) nanostructured materials have emerged as a promising class of materials for catalyzing the electrochemical and photoelectrochemical water splitting reaction due to their unique physicochemical properties and large surface area. This chapter will comprehensively discuss the recent advancements in novel 2D nanostructured and heterostructured nanomaterials, such as transition metal chalcogenides and dichalcogenides, graphene-based materials, and MXenes, for green hydrogen production. This chapter initiates with a brief overview of the current state-of-the-art energy demand, principles, and the status of hydrogen production, and its importance in the present and upcoming generations. Further, different types of existing novel 2D nanostructured materials, their heterostructures, and fundamental breakthroughs in green H2 generation by electrochemical and photoelectrochemical water-splitting methods have been discussed. Moreover, the chapter discusses fundamentally very basic mechanisms and concepts of hydrogen generation by water-splitting method in a simple manner to get a broad readership and attract more young minds.