Key Laboratory of Low-Dimensional Quantum Structures and Quantum Control of Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory for Matter Microstructure and Function of Hunan Province, Department of Physics and Synergetic Innovation Center for Quantum Effects and Applications, Hunan Normal University, Changsha 410081, China
State Key Laboratory of Marine Resource Utilization in South China Sea, and Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China
Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies, Hunan Normal University, Changsha 410081, China
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An exceptional and durable pH-universal intermetallic electrocatalyst is directly developed from in-situ hydrogenation of bimetallic cobalt-molybdenum oxide arrays, which requires low overpotentials of 53, 31 and 33 mV to drive −10 mA·cm−2 in acidic, basic and neutral media, prominently outperforming noble Pt catalysts and most of inexpensive catalysts. In-situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis confirms the rapid reconstruction of this catalyst with Co3Mo and MoO2 synergistically promoting hydrogen evolution kinetics in different pH electrolytes.
Abstract
Given the inherent potential of seawater, industrial wastewater, and residential water as inherent feedstocks for hydrogen production through water electrolysis, there is a critical demand for the exploration of robust and stable hydrogen-evolving catalysts that can operate effectively across a diverse range of pH conditions. However, the pursuit of hydrogen-evolving electrocatalysts that demonstrate both good stability and high efficiency over a wide pH range remains a formidable challenge. Here we report the rational design and synthesis of an outstanding nanoporous hybrid electrocatalyst consisting of intermetallic cobalt-molybdenum alloy particles anchoring on MoO2 cuboid arrays, which demands very low overpotentials of 72, 123 and 134 mV to deliver a current density of −100 mA·cm−2 for hydrogen evolution reaction under alkaline, neutral and acidic conditions, respectively. These catalytic activities are superior to most non-precious-metal-based catalysts documented in the literatures, and are even comparable to noble metal catalysts. In particular, this alloy electrocatalyst exhibits excellent stability at 50 or 300 mA·cm−2 without obvious activity degradation, which is further supported by the undetectable changes in the surface chemical valence states on the basis of in-situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic studies. This study provides an innovative strategy for the design and synthesis of effective non-noble intermetallic catalysts for pH-universal hydrogen evolution over a wide pH range.
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