Bifunctional V-doped NiCoP nanowires for high-efficiency electrolysis

Abstract

The development of highly efficient and economically viable bifunctional electrocatalysts is essential for overall water splitting in alkaline environments. Therefore, we synthesize V-doped NiCoP one-dimensional nanowire catalysts using hydrothermal and chemical vapor deposition methods. The as-obtained NCP-2 sample exhibits superior electrocatalytic performance, which might be attributed to the moderate vanadium doping that increases the density of electrochemically active sites and modulates the electronic structure of NiCoP. The NCP-2 sample shows an overpotential of 74.3 mV at 10 mA cm⁻² with a small Tafel slope of 83.8 mV dec⁻¹ during HER activity. In the OER process, NCP-2 exhibits an overpotential of 280 mV at 20 mA cm⁻² (79.2 mV dec⁻¹). Meanwhile, the NCP-2 nanowire arrays possess a low cell voltage of 1.55 V at 10 mA cm⁻². This material shows significant potential for applications in sustainable energy systems.