The electrochemistry and electrocatalysis of a number of heme proteins entrapped in agarose hydrogel films in the room-temperature ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([bmim][PF(6)]) have been investigated. UV-vis and FTIR spectroscopy show that the heme proteins retain their native structure in agarose film. The uniform distribution of hemoglobin in agarose-dimethylformamide film was demonstrated by atomic force microscopy. Cyclic voltammetry shows that direct electron transfer between the heme proteins and glassy carbon electrode is quasi-reversible in [bmim][PF(6)]. The redox potentials for hemoglobin, myoglobin, horseradish peroxidase, cytochrome c, and catalase were found to be more negative than those in aqueous solution. The charge-transfer coefficient and the apparent electron-transfer rate constant for these heme proteins in [bmim][PF(6)] were calculated from the peak-to-peak separation as a function of scan rate. The heme proteins catalyze the electroreduction of trichloroacetic acid and tert-butyl hydroperoxide in [bmim][PF(6)]. The kinetic parameter I(max) (maximum current at saturation concentration of substrate) and the apparent K(m) (Michaelis-Menten constant) for the electrocatalytic reactions were evaluated.
Using the MoS2‐WTe2 heterostructure as a model system combined with electrochemical microreactors and density function theory calculations, it is shown that heterostructured contacts enhance the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity of monolayer MoS2. Two possible mechanisms are suggested to explain this enhancement: efficient charge injection through large‐area heterojunctions between MoS2 and WTe2 and effective screening of mirror charges due to the semimetallic nature of WTe2. The dielectric screening effect is proven minor, probed by measuring the HER activity of monolayer MoS2 on various support substrates with dielectric constants ranging from 4 to 300. Thus, the enhanced HER is attributed to the increased charge injection into MoS2 through large‐area heterojunctions. Based on this understanding, a MoS2/WTe2 hybrid catalyst is fabricated with an HER overpotential of −140 mV at 10 mA cm−2, a Tafel slope of 40 mV dec−1, and long stability. These results demonstrate the importance of interfacial design in transition metal dichalcogenide HER catalysts. The microreactor platform presents an unambiguous approach to probe interfacial effects in various electrocatalytic reactions.
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