Bifunctional catalysts of Co₃O₄@GCN tubular nanostructured (TNS) hybrids for oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions

Catalysts for oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions (OER/HER) are at the heart of renewable green energy sources such as water splitting. Although incredible efforts have been made to develop efficient catalysts for OER and HER, great challenges still remain in the development of bifunctional catalysts. Here, we report a novel hybrid of Co₃O₄ embedded in tubular nanostructures of graphitic carbon nitride (GCN) and synthesized through a facile, large-scale chemical method at low temperature. Strong synergistic effects between Co₃O₄ and GCN resulted in excellent performance as a bifunctional catalyst for OER and HER. The high surface area, unique tubular nanostructure, and composition of the hybrid made all redox sites easily available for catalysis and provided faster ionic and electronic conduction. The Co₃O₄@GCN tubular nanostructured (TNS) hybrid exhibited the lowest overpotential (0.12 V) and excellent current density (147 mA/cm²) in OER, better than benchmarks IrO₂ and RuO₂, and with superior durability in alkaline media. Furthermore, the Co₃O₄@GCN TNS hybrid demonstrated excellent performance in HER, with a much lower onset and overpotential, and a stable current density. It is expected that the Co₃O₄@GCN TNS hybrid developed in this study will be an attractive alternative to noble metals catalysts in large scale water splitting and fuel cells.