Issue 46, 2017

High-efficient electrocatalysts by unconventional acid-etching for overall water splitting

Abstract

Recent advances in doping and heterostructuring based on earth-abundant two-dimensional nanoframeworks provide new possibilities in electrocatalysis. In this study, a novel, unconventional, one-step self-regulating acid-etching strategy was developed to prepare two-tiered hierarchical Fe-doped and Pt-decorated nickel hydroxide nanosheets selectively for efficient oxygen evolution and hydrogen evolution reactions. The combinatorial hydrolysis of Ni ions in a self-limiting acidic environment induces selective growth of disparate dimension nanosheets. The proposed strategy, avoiding multifold structural design challenges, delivers highly exposed active sites and robust catalyst/support interfaces. Moreover, the exquisite structure and synergetic heterostructure modulation afford kinetically favorable electrolyte mass transport, and gas bubble release. Consequently, the structurally well-designed and hetero-coordinated electrodes attest highly efficient oxygen evolution with a low Tafel slope of 70.6 mV dec−1 and overpotential of 300 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm−2, while it 30.4 mV dec−1 and 37 mV for hydrogen evolution, which rival performances of state-of-the-art electrocatalysts.

Graphical abstract: High-efficient electrocatalysts by unconventional acid-etching for overall water splitting

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
07 Okt 2017
Accepted
30 Okt 2017
First published
31 Okt 2017

J. Mater. Chem. A, 2017,5, 24153-24158

High-efficient electrocatalysts by unconventional acid-etching for overall water splitting

H. Wu, T. Zhu, X. Lu and G. W. Ho, J. Mater. Chem. A, 2017, 5, 24153 DOI: 10.1039/C7TA08826D

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