Transition
metal nitrides and elemental doping are effective methods
to enhance the catalytic activity of hydrogen evolution reaction (HER)
at a high current density. Herein, Ni-W2N@NF was synthesized
to exhibit excellent HER performance in an alkaline environment. Not
only theoretical but also experimental analyses prove that Ni enters
the W2N lattice in the form of substitutional doping. Ni-doped
W2N optimizes the free energy of hydrogen adsorption and
hydroxide adsorption. Thus, the HER kinetics are accelerated. Therefore,
the synthesized Ni-W2N@NF achieved an industrial high current
density of 2000 mA cm–2 in 1 M KOH with a small
overpotential of 317 mV. The HER activity of Ni-W2N@NF
is superior to those of most reports. What is more, the obtained catalyst
achieves a current density of 1500 mA cm–2 in an
alkaline seawater solution with an overpotential of only 345 mV and
exhibits excellent cycling stability. This work will offer a feasible
idea for a designing platinum group metals free metal as an effective
catalyst for HER reaction under an industrial large current in an
alkaline solution.
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