Cu/Mo₂C synthesized through Anderson-type polyoxometalates modulate interfacial water structure to achieve hydrogen evolution at high current density

The development of efficient non-precious metal catalysts is important for the large-scale application of alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Here, we synthesized a composite catalyst of Cu and Mo₂C (Cu/Mo₂C) using Anderson-type polyoxometalates (POMs) synthesized by the facile soaking method as precursors. The electronic interaction between Cu and Mo₂C drives the positive charge of Cu, alleviating the strong adsorption of hydrogen at the Mo site by modulating the d-band center of Mo₂C. By studying the interfacial water structure using in situ attenuated total reflection surface-enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy (ATR-SEIRAS), we determined that the positively charged Cu crystals have the function of activating water molecules and optimizing the interfacial water structure. The interfacial water of Cu/Mo₂C contains a large amount of free water, which could facilitate the transport of reaction intermediates. Due to activated water molecules and optimized interfacial water structure and hydrogen adsorption energy, the overpotential of Cu/Mo₂C is 24 mV at a current density of 10 mA·cm⁻² and 178 mV at a current density of 1000 mA·cm⁻². This work improves catalyst performance in terms of interfacial water structure optimization and deepens the understanding of water-mediated catalysis.