Heazlewoodite, Ni₃S₂: A Potent Catalyst for Oxygen Reduction to Water under Benign Conditions

Abstract

Electrodeposited thin films and nanoparticles of Ni3S2 are highly active, poison- and corrosion-resistant catalysts for oxygen reduction to water at neutral pH. In pH 7 phosphate buffer, Ni3S2 displays catalytic onset at 0.8 V versus the reversible hydrogen electrode, a Tafel slope of 109 mV decade(-1), and high faradaic efficiency for four-electron reduction of O2 to water. Under these conditions, the activity and stability of Ni3S2 exceeds that of polycrystalline platinum and manganese, nickel, and cobalt oxides, illustrating the catalytic potential of pairing labile first-row transition metal active sites with a more covalent sulfide host lattice.