Nanorod-like molybdenum/nickel-copper-doped iron phosphide as highly active electrocatalysts for enhanced hydrogen evolution reaction
摘要
Developing high-efficiency, stable and low-cost non-noble metal electrocatalysts for water electrolysis is crucial for green hydrogen generation. In this paper, self-supported bimetal-co-doped iron phosphide with nanorod-like morphology loaded on carbon paper (CP) were fabricated through a two-step method. The microstructure and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) performances of Mo-Cu co-doped (Mo-Cu-FeP/CP-0.1:0.2) and Ni-Cu co-doped (Ni-Cu-FeP/CP-0.1:0.2) catalysts in acidic and alkaline electrolytes were systematically investigated. The results demonstrate that Mo-Cu-FeP possesses smaller particle size arising from lattice distortion induced by atomic radius differences. Compared with FeP, Mo and Cu exist in the form of high-valence oxides and effectively modulate the electronic structure of Fe species, while Ni and Cu form Ni-Cu–P bonds which act as additional catalytic active sites. In 0.5 M H₂SO₄ electrolyte, Ni-Cu-FeP/CP-0.1:0.2 catalyst delivers an overpotential of merely 63 mV at 10 mA cm⁻² for HER with a Tafel slope of 38 mV dec⁻¹ and a charge transfer resistance (Rct) as low as of 1.52 Ω cm⁻². In 1.0 M KOH electrolyte, Mo-Cu-FeP/CP-0.1:0.2 exhibits superior HER activity with an overpotential of 95 mV at 10 mA cm⁻², a Tafel slope of 55 mV dec⁻¹ and an Rct of 1.80 Ω cm⁻². Compared with single-metal doping modification, bimetallic co-doping remarkably enhances intrinsic activity and electrochemical active area via multi-atomic synergistic coupling effects. Among them, Ni-Cu-P bonds provide extra active sites in acidic media, whereas Mo-induced lattice distortion and electron-withdrawing effects facilitate the water dissociation step in alkaline media. This study provides a feasible bimetallic doping strategy for the design of non-noble metal electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution with low-cost and high-performance.