Nature Communications · 2017 · 844 citations · 57 references
Natural SciencesChemistryMaterials ScienceCatalysisElectrochemistryMaterials ChemistryCatalyst DesignCatalytic MaterialsElectrode MaterialsNanocatalysisNanostructured Energy MaterialsRedox-active MaterialsAlkaline Water ElectrolysisCatalyst ActivityElectrocatalystsElectron TransferHydrogen EvolutionHydrogen Evolution CatalystsHydrogen Evolution ReactionWater Electrolysis
Abstract The scalable production of hydrogen could conveniently be realized by alkaline water electrolysis. Currently, the major challenge confronting hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is lacking inexpensive alternatives to platinum-based electrocatalysts. Here we report a high-efficient and stable electrocatalyst composed of ruthenium and cobalt bimetallic nanoalloy encapsulated in nitrogen-doped graphene layers. The catalysts display remarkable performance with low overpotentials of only 28 and 218 mV at 10 and 100 mA cm −2 , respectively, and excellent stability of 10,000 cycles. Ruthenium is the cheapest platinum-group metal and its amount in the catalyst is only 3.58 wt.%, showing the catalyst high activity at a very competitive price. Density functional theory calculations reveal that the introduction of ruthenium atoms into cobalt core can improve the efficiency of electron transfer from alloy core to graphene shell, beneficial for enhancing carbon–hydrogen bond, thereby lowing ΔG H* of HER.
57
Recent Progress in Cobalt‐Based Heterogeneous Catalysts for Electrochemical Water Splitting
Jiahai Wang, Wei Cui, Qian Liu et al. · Advanced Materials · 2015 · 2.4K citations