Graphene Quantum Dots-Based Electrocatalytic Materials For Electrochemical Water Splitting

Due to their unique physicochemical properties and multifunctional nature, graphene quantum dots have, of late, captivated a lot of attention from scientists worldwide. Significant research has been carried out in deriving graphene quantum dots by various synthesis methods, covering both top-down as well as bottom-up approaches. The properties of graphene quantum dots can be further enhanced and tuned by either heteroatom doping or forming binary and ternary composites. These modified graphene quantum dots have been proven to give remarkable results in electrochemistry, particularly electrocatalytic water splitting. The intrinsic nature of the dopants may promote the adsorption of intermediates or reform the electronic structure, thereby boosting the electrocatalytic activity. The present chapter covers synthesis of graphene quantum dots based materials and their electrocatalytic activity for water splitting, including hydrogen evolution and oxygen evolution reactions.