One-pot, large-scale, simple synthesis of CoxP nanocatalysts for electrochemical hydrogen evolution

Non-noble metal based and earth-abundant electrocatalysts with high hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activities are highly desirable as replacements for the scarce and expensive platinum-based catalysts. Cobalt phosphides (CoxP) have been recently demonstrated as one of the most promising HER candi...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of materials chemistry. A, Materials for energy and sustainability Materials for energy and sustainability, 2016-08, Vol.4 (33), p.13011-13016
Main Authors: Tian, Lihong, Yan, Xiaodong, Chen, Xuejiao, Liu, Lei, Chen, Xiaobo
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Catalysis
Catalysts
Cobalt
Hydrogen evolution
Nanoparticles
Phosphides
Production methods
Synthesis
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Non-noble metal based and earth-abundant electrocatalysts with high hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activities are highly desirable as replacements for the scarce and expensive platinum-based catalysts. Cobalt phosphides (CoxP) have been recently demonstrated as one of the most promising HER candidates in acidic electrolytes. However, the fabrication methods are normally tedious and produce only a small amount (few milligrams) of catalyst. In this paper, we report a one-pot, large-scale (tens of grams), simple synthesis of cobalt phosphide nanoparticles with impressive HER activities. The CoxP catalyst, when obtained using suitable reaction conditions, shows a high cathodic current density at a low overpotential and a small Tafel slope (approximately 58 mV dec-1). Thus, this study provides a practically promising approach to fabricate cost effective catalysts at a large scale for electrochemical hydrogen production.
ISSN:2050-7488
2050-7496
DOI:10.1039/c6ta05503f