Enhancing Hydrogen Evolution Electrocatalytic Performance in Neutral Media via Nitrogen and Iron Phosphide Interactions

Abstract

It remains a challenge to develop efficient electrocatalysts in neutral media for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) due to the sluggish kinetics and switch of the rate determining step. Although metal phosphides are widely used HER catalysts, their structural stability is an issue due to oxidization, and the HER performance in neutral media requires improvement. Herein, a new material, i.e., grapevine‐shaped N‐doped iron phosphide on carbon nanotubes, as an efficient HER catalyst in neutral media is developed. The optimized catalyst shows an overpotential of 256 mV at a large current density of 65 mA cm−2, which is even 10 mV lower than that of the commercial 20% Pt/C catalyst. The excellent performance of the catalyst is further studied by combined computational and experimental techniques, which proves that the interaction between nitrogen and iron phosphides can provide more efficient active structures and stabilize the metal phosphide electrocatalysts for HER.

Tunable Ru‐Ru2P heterostructures with charge redistribution for efficient pH‐universal hydrogen evolution

“…Therefore, to realize large‐scale hydrogen production and efficient utilization of new energy, it is urgently indispensable to design outstanding hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) electrocatalysts to accelerate the process of water splitting. Considering the decrease in catalytic activity and the energy loss caused by the inevitable proton concentration change in the actual continuous HER process, the ideal electrocatalyst should adapt to the HER catalytic mechanism under different pH conditions 7,8 . In addition, the efficient pH‐Universal electrocatalyst is also expected to reduce the complexity and cost of the actual water electrolysis system, while meeting the application standards of various electrolytic cells from proton exchange membrane (acidic), microbial (neutral) to conventional alkaline 9–11 …”

“…Considering the decrease in catalytic activity and the energy loss caused by the inevitable proton concentration change in the actual continuous HER process, the ideal electrocatalyst should adapt to the HER catalytic mechanism under different pH conditions. 7,8 In addition, the efficient pH-Universal electrocatalyst is also expected to reduce the complexity and cost of the actual water electrolysis system, while meeting the application standards of various electrolytic cells from proton exchange membrane (acidic), microbial (neutral) to conventional alkaline. [9][10][11] Hitherto, it is still challenging to construct a durable electrocatalyst that has similar HER activity to Pt/C as benchmark at all pH values.…”

Recent Advances in Design of Electrocatalysts for High‐Current‐Density Water Splitting

“…Hydrogen is not only a promising alternative energy carrier to fossil fuels, [5] but also a crucial feedstock in industry for fertilizer production, petroleum refining, and hydrogenation. [9] The main reactions involved in electrochemical water splitting include the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER). In the context of global carbon neutrality, the importance of "green hydrogen" by electrochemical water splitting technology has attracted massive attention not only by the scientific community but also by governments and industries around the world.For industrial use, developing electrocatalysts with a good performance under the industriallyrelevant conditions including high current density (HCD), long working time, and demanded pressure and temperature, is crucial.…”

Organic/Inorganic Hybrid Fibers: Controllable Architectures for Electrochemical Energy Applications

“…[25] Transition metal phosphides (TMPs) are a promising class of nonprecious metal catalysts due to their hydrogenase-like catalytic mechanism. [204][205][206] Various TMPs such as FeP, CoP, 2 P, and MoP have coupled with conductive carbon fiber for active HER catalysts. For example, the Bao group presented an electrospinning-based reduction approach to in situ generate NiP nanoparticles in N-doped porous carbon nanofibers (Ni 2 P@NPCNFs).…”