The electrochemical reforming of ethanol into hydrogen and hydrocarbons can reduce the electric potential energy barrier of hydrogen production from electrochemical water splitting, obtaining high value-added anode products. In this work, Ru/Ni­(OH)2 heterostructured nanomaterials were synthesized successfully by an in situ reduction strategy with remarkable multifunctional catalytic properties. In the hydrogen evolution reaction, Ru/Ni­(OH)2 exhibits a smaller overpotential of 31 mV to obtain a current density of 10 mA/cm2, which is better than that of commercial Pt/C. Notably, such heterostructured Ru/Ni­(OH)2 nanomaterials also perform an outstanding catalytic selectivity toward an acetaldehyde product in the oxidation of ethanol. DFT calculations reveal that abundant Ru(0)-Ni­(II) heterostructured sites are the key factor for the excellent performances. As a result, an ethanol-selective reforming electrolyzer driven by a 2 V solar cell is constructed to produce hydrogen and acetaldehyde in the cathodic and anodic part, respectively, via using Ru/Ni­(OH)2 heterostructured catalysts. This work provides a forward-looking technical guidance for the design of novel energy conversion systems.

Using a one‐pot hydrothermal method with ethylenediamine, we have synthesized mesoporous PtPb nanosheets that exhibit exceptional activity in both hydrogen evolution and ethanol oxidation. The resulting PtPb nanosheets have a Pt‐enriched structure with up to 80 % atomic content of Pt. The synthetic method generated a significant mesoporous structure, formed through the dissolution of Pb species. These advanced structures enable the mesoporous PtPb nanosheets to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm−2 with an extreme low overpotential of 21 mV for hydrogen evolution under alkaline conditions. Furthermore, the mesoporous PtPb nanosheets exhibit superior catalytic activity and stability for ethanol oxidation. The highest catalytic current density of PtPb nanosheets is 5.66 times higher than that of commercial Pt/C. This research opens up new possibilities in designing mesoporous, two‐dimensional noble‐metal‐based materials for electrochemical energy conversion with excellent performance.

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In this work, we have successfully constructed carbon nanotube (CNT)-a-CoS x amorphous heterostructured catalysts using a two-step method. The abundant active sites, superior electron transport properties, and large electrochemically active specific surface area enable amorphous CNT-a-CoS x to exhibit higher hydrogen evolution reaction performance than crystalline CNT-c-CoS x in acidic conditions. To deliver a cathodic current density of 10 mA cm −2 , the required overpotential is only 76 mV. No significant performance degradation is observed after 60,000 s of electrochemical durability test. This facile strategy provides technical support for the design and construction of amorphous heterostructured electrocatalysts with high activity and stability for the generation of green hydrogen.

Using a one-pot hydrothermal method with ethylenediamine, we have synthesized mesoporous PtPb nanosheets that exhibit exceptional activity in both hydrogen evolution and ethanol oxidation. The resulting PtPb nanosheets have a Pt-enriched structure with up to 80 % atomic content of Pt. The synthetic method generated a significant mesoporous structure, formed through the dissolution of Pb species. These advanced structures enable the mesoporous PtPb nanosheets to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm À 2 with an extreme low overpotential of 21 mV for hydrogen evolution under alkaline conditions. Furthermore, the mesoporous PtPb nanosheets exhibit superior catalytic activity and stability for ethanol oxidation. The highest catalytic current density of PtPb nanosheets is 5.66 times higher than that of commercial Pt/C. This research opens up new possibilities in designing mesoporous, two-dimensional noble-metal-based materials for electrochemical energy conversion with excellent performance.