Hollow Porous CoP–Carbon Nanocages for Hydrogen Evolution Reactions

Abstract

Hollow porous nanocage structures with unique 3D configurations have a wide range of applications in various fields. In this work, we present a convenient and efficient method for synthesizing nitrogen and sulfur codoped CoP–carbon hollow porous nanocages by utilizing metal-organic framework compounds in combination with acid etching and phosphating. Etching time and phosphatization temperature will regulate the morphology of hollow porous CoP–carbon nanocages, which, in turn, will affect the electrocatalytic performance of the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). The extensive specific surface area and efficient atom utilization of hollow porous nanocages can accelerate the progress of the reactions and the precipitation of active components. The prepared N, S-codoped CoP–carbon nanocage demonstrates excellent HER performance, exhibiting a lower overpotential of 137 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm–2 in 1.0 M KOH. This performance surpasses that of most reported MOF-derived heteroatom-doped CoP–carbon matrices. Importantly, this work offers a straightforward and promising approach to achieving N, S-codoped hollow porous nanocages, thereby advancing the development of highly efficient electrocatalysts for HER.