Synthesis of MoS2 nanomaterial by liquid exfoliation and ball milling: A comparative study

Industrial applications and fundamental scientific research involving the scalable development of high-quality Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) nanosheets continue to present significant challenges. MoS2 is a material with a two-dimensional (2D) structure consisting of a single layer of molybdenum atoms positioned between two layers of sulfur atoms. The primary type of bonding present within each layer is primarily covalent in nature, characterized by the formation of robust chemical bonds between the atoms of molybdenum and sulfur. Nevertheless, the predominant driving force behind the interactions among the layers of MoS2 is attributed to van der Waals forces. This study utilizes a top-down approach to synthesize MoS2 nanomaterials from their bulk counterpart. This is achieved through the implementation of grinding via liquid exfoliation and ball milling methods. These methods effectively mitigate the influence of weak van der Waals forces that exist between the layers of MoS2, resulting in the production of nanomaterials derived from their bulk counterparts. This study compared the above methods using Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD).