An amorphous NiCuFeP@Cu3P nanoarray for an efficient hydrogen evolution reaction

Abstract

Transition metal phosphides are considered ideal alternatives for noble metal catalysts in hydrogen evolution reactions. In this study, amorphous NiCuFeP nanosheets were uniformly coated on self-supporting Cu₃P nanowire arrays through a facile electrodeposition method. The obtained 3D hierarchical NiCuFeP@Cu₃P/CF with good conductivity and abundant active sites was used as a hydrogen evolution reaction electrocatalyst. There are strong electronic interactions between each component of the material, as well as between the metal elements and P, which are conducive to improving the catalytic performance. In an alkaline electrolyte solution, the NiCuFeP@Cu₃P/CF electrode exhibits an extremely low overpotential of 38 mV to reach a current density of 10 mA cm⁻² for the hydrogen evolution reaction with outstanding long-term stability (20 h at 10 mA cm⁻²).