Reduced Graphene Oxide/NiCoP Electrocatalysts via a Facile Synthetic Strategy for Efficient Hydrogen Evolution in Alkaline Media

Abstract

The development of highly efficient and cost-effective non-precious metal electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in alkaline solutions remains a significant challenge in green hydrogen production through water electrolysis. Herein, a reduced graphene oxide/nickel-cobalt bimetallic phosphide (rGO/NiCoP) catalyst was fabricated on carbon cloth by ultrasonic spraying of rGO/metal oxide precursor (rGO/NiCoOx) and subsequent plasma phosphidation. Benefiting from the bimetallic synergy and the interfacial coupling between rGO and active NiCoP, the composite electrocatalyst achieves a current density of -10 mA cm-2 at an overpotential of just 36.1 mV, along with remarkable stability over 200 hours. Additionally, the rGO/NiCoP||RuO2 electrolyzer requires only 1.53 V to drive a current density of 10 mA cm-2 and demonstrates satisfactory stability during 60 hours of continuous operation. This work provides a novel and scalable approach for the fabrication of high-performance transition metal phosphide electrocatalysts for HER applications.