A Highly Active Porous Mo<sub>2</sub>C-Mo<sub>2</sub>N Heterostructure on Carbon Nanowalls/Diamond for a High-Current Hydrogen Evolution Reaction
Zhaofeng Zhai,
Chuyan Zhang,
Bin Chen,
Lusheng Liu,
Haozhe Song,
Bing Yang,
Ziwen Zheng,
Junyao Li,
Xin Jiang,
Nan Huang
Affiliations
Zhaofeng Zhai
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science (SYNL), Institute of Metal Research (IMR), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), No. 72 Wenhua Road, Shenyang 110016, China
Chuyan Zhang
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science (SYNL), Institute of Metal Research (IMR), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), No. 72 Wenhua Road, Shenyang 110016, China
Bin Chen
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science (SYNL), Institute of Metal Research (IMR), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), No. 72 Wenhua Road, Shenyang 110016, China
Lusheng Liu
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science (SYNL), Institute of Metal Research (IMR), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), No. 72 Wenhua Road, Shenyang 110016, China
Haozhe Song
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science (SYNL), Institute of Metal Research (IMR), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), No. 72 Wenhua Road, Shenyang 110016, China
Bing Yang
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science (SYNL), Institute of Metal Research (IMR), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), No. 72 Wenhua Road, Shenyang 110016, China
Ziwen Zheng
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science (SYNL), Institute of Metal Research (IMR), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), No. 72 Wenhua Road, Shenyang 110016, China
Junyao Li
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science (SYNL), Institute of Metal Research (IMR), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), No. 72 Wenhua Road, Shenyang 110016, China
Xin Jiang
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science (SYNL), Institute of Metal Research (IMR), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), No. 72 Wenhua Road, Shenyang 110016, China
Nan Huang
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science (SYNL), Institute of Metal Research (IMR), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), No. 72 Wenhua Road, Shenyang 110016, China
Developing non-precious metal-based electrocatalysts operating in high-current densities is highly demanded for the industry-level electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Here, we report the facile preparation of binder-free Mo2C-Mo2N heterostructures on carbon nanowalls/diamond (CNWs/D) via ultrasonic soaking followed by an annealing treatment. The experimental investigations and density functional theory calculations reveal the downshift of the d-band center caused by the heterojunction between Mo2C/Mo2N triggering highly active interfacial sites with a nearly zero ∆GH* value. Furthermore, the 3D-networked CNWs/D, as the current collector, features high electrical conductivity and large surface area, greatly boosting the electron transfer rate of HER occurring on the interfacial sites of Mo2C-Mo2N. Consequently, the self-supporting Mo2C-Mo2N@CNWs/D exhibits significantly low overpotentials of 137.8 and 194.4 mV at high current densities of 500 and 1000 mA/cm2, respectively, in an alkaline solution, which far surpass the benchmark Pt/C (228.5 and 359.3 mV) and are superior to most transition-metal-based materials. This work presents a cost-effective and high-efficiency non-precious metal-based electrocatalyst candidate for the electrochemical hydrogen production industry.
