In situ surface reduction for accessing atomically dispersed platinum on carbon sheets for acidic hydrogen evolution

Abstract

Exploring the simple yet well-controlled synthesis of atomically dispersed Pt catalysts is a crucial endeavour for harvesting clean hydrogen via the kinetics-favoured acidic electrochemical water splitting technique. Here we employed the use of defective carbon sheets by KOH etching as a substrate for the in situ surface reduction of Pt(IV) ions to prepare atomically dispersed Pt. Physical and electrochemical characterizations reveal a strong interaction between the carbon substrate and Pt species, providing the basis for the in situ surface reduction. The atomically dispersed Pt electrocatalyst exhibited high HER performance in a sulfuric acid electrolyte, with an overpotential as low as 55 mV at a current density of 100 mA cm^−a, and better catalytic durability compared to the commercial Pt/C. The mechanism study revealed that the full utilization of atomically dispersed Pt and the optimized catalyst surface may enhance the recombination of adsorbed *H via the Volmer–Tafel mechanism to produce H₂ at a high efficiency. In the light of high activity, durability, and low cost, the atomically dispersed Pt material is promising for acidic HER application.