Molybdenum sulfide was loaded on TiO2 by an in-situ solar photo-deposition method over a dye synthesized photocatalytic process using Eosin Y (EY) as a photo-sensitizer and tri-ethanolamine (TEOA) as an electron donor. (NH4)(2)MoS4 was also used as a precursor. The effect of molybdenum sulfide as a co-catalyst was investigated. The proposed noble-metal-free photocatalytic system exhibited high efficiency for H-2 evolution. A systematic statistical design of experimental analysis was employed to explore the impact of various parameters and to subsequently optimize the photocatalytic hydrogen production. TEOA, EY and (NH4)(2)MoS4 concentrations as well as pH of the solution were selected as the four factors in the study, whereas the amount of hydrogen produced after 3 h of solar irradiation was considered as the response. The possible mechanism for the in-situ solar photo-deposition method was also proposed. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.