Improved hydrogen evolution activity of layered double hydroxide by optimizing the electronic structure

The layered double hydroxides (LDHs) are considered to own great potential to serve as a catalyst for water electrolysis, while their extremely poor hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity limits their application. Herein, a general designing strategy to improve the HER activity of LDHs by P doping and deposition of metal nanodots (NDs) is proposed, which increases one order of magnitude higher than that of pristine LDHs. The obtained electrocatalyst, such as Cu NDs/P-FeCoLDH (CPFC-LDH), reaching a current density of 10 mA/cm(2) with only 63 mV overpotential for HER in alkaline electrolyte. The adsorption energy of H-ads and OH on catalyst is optimized by this strategy, which can weaken the interaction between the adsorbed H-ads and electronegative oxygen in LDHs by formation of P-O bonds. This work provides a strategy to develop LDHs materials with high catalytic activity for HER.

Automated summary

This study proposes a design strategy to improve the HER activity of LDHs by P doping and deposition of metal nanodots, achieving an increase of one order of magnitude. The obtained electrocatalyst CPFC-LDH shows excellent activity in alkaline electrolyte, reaching a current density of 10 mA/cm(2) with only 63 mV overpotential for HER.