Enhanced Oxygen Evolution Catalytic Activity of Ni3Mo3N-MoO2-NiO Nanoparticles via Synergistic Effect

Owing to the unique conductivity and catalytic activity, bimetallic nitrides are regarded as applicable catalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER), but practical progress is restricted due to that fact that the synthesis of bimetallic nitrides is complicated and the stability in strong alkaline electrolytes is insufficient. Herein, to improve performance with a synergistic effect, the ternary Ni3Mo3N-MoO2-NiO nanoparticles catalyst (NMN-MO-NO) and its derivatives are fabricated by pyrolyzing the Ni-Mo urea precursor at 800 degrees C in Ar. The nest-like NMN-MO-NO is composed of particles with a diameter of about 40 nm, including an abundant contact area. As-prepared samples are conducted in the OER measurements, in which NMN-MO-NO exhibited the best performance. The catalyst exhibits favorable activity with a low overpotential of 363 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm(-2) and a low Tafel slope of 139 mV dec(-1). Moreover, the sample also shows excellent stability that the current density retains without obvious attenuation. The superior performance of the catalyst is attributed to the synergistic effect and loose structure. Overall, our work offers a neoteric avenue to synthesize the transition metal nitrides and tune the performance of the catalyst of OER on the basis of the non-noble metal.

Automated summary

This study reports the synthesis of ternary Ni3Mo3N-MoO2-NiO nanoparticles catalyst and its derivatives through pyrolysis method. The catalyst exhibits superior performance in the oxygen evolution reaction, with favorable activity, low overpotential and Tafel slope, as well as excellent stability.