Revealing the activity of Co₃Mo₃N and Co₃Mo₃N_0.5 as electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction

Abstract

The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) from water is governed by electrocatalysts used. Multiple factors such as crystal structure, composition and morphology dictate the final catalytic performance. However, as multicomponent materials...

Elucidating Catalytic Sites Governing the Performance toward the Hydrogen Evolution Reaction in Ternary Nitride Electrocatalysts

“…Finally, we noticed that the reported overpotential value required for Co 3 Mo 3 N to reach the benchmark current densities of 10 mA cm −2 is 108 mV. 12 In comparison we found that this value in Co 2 Mo 3 N is 148 mV. This points out, at least indirectly that d 8 /d 9 metal sites probably play a key role in catalytic activity as reducing the number of Co per formula unit tends to lead to a higher overpotential.…”

“…12,38 The deconvolution of the spectrum (Figure 7b) allowed us to assign the position of the N 1s peak at 397.7 eV which was similar to that previously reported. 12,29,39,40 The significant overlap of Mo−N components with N 1s peaks in Mo 3p spectra hindered the reliable estimate of Ncontent from the XPS analysis in Co 2 Mo 3 N (XPS:7.0 at. %; expected: 16.7 at.…”

“…9 On the other hand, the recent study of Co 3 Mo 3 N suggests that the presence of nitrogen bonding brings the necessary structural stability that allows metal nitrides to compete effectively with Pt in terms of stability. 12 The DFT simulations carried out by Sun et al also pointed out that Co sites were catalytically active, but no conclusive experimental evidence was provided to confirm the specific activity of Co (rather than Mo or N) in this nitride.…”

Nanofibrillar hydrogels outperform Pt/C for hydrogen evolution reactions under high-current conditions

“…4 In this regard, researchers have attempted to develop electrocatalysts with minimal use of noble metal elements [5][6][7][8] or with earth-abundant elements. [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19] For example, the former electrocatalyst category includes Pt nanoparticles supported on carbon nanomaterials 5,6 and Pt-and Ru-based single-atom catalysts. 7,8 The latter category includes earth-abundant transition metal-based compounds, such as oxides, 9,10 phosphides, 11-13 nitrides [14][15][16] and chalcogenides.…”

“…[9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19] For example, the former electrocatalyst category includes Pt nanoparticles supported on carbon nanomaterials 5,6 and Pt-and Ru-based single-atom catalysts. 7,8 The latter category includes earth-abundant transition metal-based compounds, such as oxides, 9,10 phosphides, 11-13 nitrides [14][15][16] and chalcogenides. 17,18 While most transition metals are relatively abundant, there is a high possibility that key electrocatalytic transition metal elements, particularly Co, have limited availability due to mass consumption in the rapidly growing Li-ion battery industry.…”