Engineering of Ru/Ru2P interfaces superior to Pt active sites for catalysis of the alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction

Zhao Liu; Zhe Li; Jing Li; Jie Xiong; Shunfa Zhou; Jiawei Liang; Weiwei Cai; Chao Wang; Zehui Yang; Hansong Cheng

doi:10.1039/C8TA11635K

Engineering of Ru/Ru₂P interfaces superior to Pt active sites for catalysis of the alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction†

Zhao Liu,‡^a Zhe Li,‡^b Jing Li,‡^a Jie Xiong,^a Shunfa Zhou,^a Jiawei Liang,^a Weiwei Cai,

*^a Chao Wang,*^c Zehui Yang

*^a and Hansong Cheng^a

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* Corresponding authors

^a Sustainable Energy Laboratory, Faculty of Materials Science and Chemistry, China University of Geoscinces, Wuhan, China
E-mail: willcai1985@gmail.com, yeungzehui@gmail.com

^b College of Chemistry and Material Science, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan, China

^c Institute of Nanosurface Science and Engineering, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Micro/Nano Optomechatronics Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
E-mail: cwang367@szu.edu.cn

Abstract

Large-scale hydrogen production from industrial electrolysis technology is challenged by sluggish hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) kinetics under alkaline conditions, even with Pt as catalyst. In consideration of the synergistic effects of Ru on water dissociation and Ru₂P on proton reduction, Ru/Ru₂P interfaces were engineered in situ via a high-pressure phosphorization strategy with phosphine as both a phosphorus source and reactant. The Ru/Ru₂P-loaded P-doped carbon (Ru–Ru₂P/PC) catalyst therefore exhibited superior alkaline HER activity compared to the Pt catalyst. The overpotential of the Ru–Ru₂P catalyst to drive a 50 mA cm⁻² alkaline HER was reduced by 65 mV compared to the Pt/C catalyst, and the loading of noble metal was much lower. Thus, the mass activity was doubled. With its great stability under alkaline conditions, the easily synthesized Ru–Ru₂P catalyst shows promising application potential in industrial electrolysis systems.

Journal of Materials Chemistry A

Engineering of Ru/Ru₂P interfaces superior to Pt active sites for catalysis of the alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction†

Abstract

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Engineering of Ru/Ru₂P interfaces superior to Pt active sites for catalysis of the alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction

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Journal of Materials Chemistry A