Integration of Ni Doping and a Mo 2 C/MoC Heterojunction for Hydrogen Evolution in Acidic and Alkaline Conditions

• Published in: ACS applied materials & interfaces 2021-05, Vol.13 (19), p.22646-22654
• Main Authors: Liu, Changhai, Sun, Lei, Luo, Linlin, Wang, Wenchang, Dong, Huilong, Chen, Zhidong
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1944-8244; 1944-8252
• DOI: 10.1021/acsami.1c04989

Although nonprecious metal catalysts based on earth-abundant 3d transition metals (TMs) are regarded as promising substitutes for a noble metal electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), their large-scale application is still inhibited by their inadequate activity and durability. Here, a facile method for nonprecious metal catalysts has been developed to prepare molybdenum carbide on nitrogen-doped carbon. By optimizing the Ni doping ratio, the Ni @MoC /NC exhibits the lowest overpotential for 10 mA cm and superior stability in both acidic and alkaline media for HER application, outperforming most of the reported HER electrocatalysts. In addition, a theoretical simulation has also confirmed the possible mechanism for the synergistic effect with the regulative adsorption energy of hydrogen species with Ni doping and formation of a Mo C/MoC heterojunction in the Ni @MoC /NC electrocatalyst. Therefore, this work provides a new avenue for designing two-dimensional nanostructures with an optimized electronic structure for promising TM HER electrocatalysts in a wide pH range.