Rational Design of Better Hydrogen Evolution Electrocatalysts for Water Splitting: A Review

Abstract

The excessive dependence on fossil fuels contributes to the majority of CO2 emissions, influencing on the climate change. One promising alternative to fossil fuels is green hydrogen, which can be produced through water electrolysis from renewable electricity. However, the variety and complexity of hydrogen evolution electrocatalysts currently studied increases the difficulty in the integration of catalytic theory, catalyst design and preparation, and characterization methods. Herein, this review first highlights design principles for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) electrocatalysts, presenting the thermodynamics, kinetics, and related electronic and structural descriptors for HER. Second, the reasonable design, preparation, mechanistic understanding, and performance enhancement of electrocatalysts are deeply discussed based on intrinsic and extrinsic effects. Third, recent advancements in the electrocatalytic water splitting technology are further discussed briefly. Finally, the challenges and perspectives of the development of highly efficient hydrogen evolution electrocatalysts for water splitting are proposed.

Bimetal Modulation Stabilizing a Metallic Heterostructure for Efficient Overall Water Splitting at Large Current Density

“…Electrochemical water splitting, including hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER), is a sustainable route for the continuous generation of hydrogen. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] The commercial Pt/C and RuO 2 have been regarded as typical catalysts for HER and OER, respectively, but the poor stability at largecurrent densities and scarcity limit their wide application. [3,9] Despite aplenty reserves, most non-noble metal electrocatalysts such as MoS 2 and NiS 2 , have attracted extensive attention for alkaline water splitting, owing to their superior electrocatalytic performances at small current densities (<200 mA cm −2 ).…”

Self-Supported Bimetallic Phosphide Heterojunction-Integrated Electrode Promoting High-Performance Alkaline Anion-Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysis

“…Unfortunately, the high cost, scarcity, and low stability of noble-metal electrocatalysts seriously limit their large-scale application . Therefore, numerous efforts have been devoted to exploring non-noble-metal catalysts such as transition-metal phosphides, nitrides, selenides, etc. − However, their performance at large current densities (≥1000 mA cm –2 ) and high temperatures (industrial electrolysis temperature 60–80 °C) is still unsatisfactory due to morphological and structural damage or the lack of reasonable electronic regulation to obtain the optimal intermediate adsorption energy. , Thus, it is imperative to develop a facile synthetic method to optimize the morphology and electronic structure of non-noble-metal catalysts to obtain good performance under practical industrial conditions. Interestingly, the construction of heterojunctions through interface engineering can effectively improve the catalyst performance due to its synergistic effect, strain effect, and electronic interaction .…”

Sun, heat and electricity. A comprehensive study of non‐pollutant alternatives to produce green hydrogen

“…The literature on relevant thermolysis reviews is limited as well, with some work focused on the technical field 50‐52 . The reviews regarding electrolysis are numerous, mainly technical, 53‐62 but also historical 29,63,64 . As for works that consider various technologies, there is a relevant review on thermolysis and photolysis, 65 as well as few relevant reviews that also include electrolysis, 66,67 most of them from a broader view that includes polluting hydrogen production methods without analysing water splitting in such detail, 68‐74 all of them focused on technical analysis.…”