Rh-Ag-Si ternary composites: highly active hydrogen evolution electrocatalysts over Pt-Ag-Si

Hydrogen production with the aid of electrocatalysis is a critical component for several developing cleanenergy technologies. Such a renewable energy depends heavily on the choice of cheap and efficient catalysts for hydrogen evolution, which has still been a challenge until now. In this work, the theoretical calculation indicates that Rh-Ag-Si ternary catalysts exhibit more active hydrogen evolution performance than Pt-Ag-Si because the migration activation energies of H atoms from Rh(111) to Si are lower than those from Pt(111) to Si via the Ag surface. This simulation was confirmed by the experimental results: Rh-Ag/SiNW (or Pt-Ag/SiNW) catalysts were prepared by directly reducing Rh (or Pt) and Ag ions with Si-H bonds. The Rh-Ag/SiNW-2 with the optimal mass ratio of 2.3 : 23.4 : 74.3 (Rh : Ag : Si) exhibited a lower Tafel slope (51 mV dec(-1)) and a larger exchange current density (87.1 x 10(- 6) A cm(-2)) than the Pt-Ag/SiNW. In addition, the mass activity of Rh-Ag/SiNW-2 at an overpotential of 0.2 V (11.5 mA mu gRh(-1)) is 12.0, 5.0 and 3.3 fold higher than that of Rh-Ag (0.96 mA mu gRh(-1)), Pt-Ag/SiNW (2.3 mA mu gPt(-1)) and 40 wt% Pt/C (3.5 mA mu gPt(-1)) catalysts, respectively. Moreover, the Rh-Ag/SiNW nanocatalysts had good stability in acidic media. The results presented herein may offer a novel and effective methodology for the designing of cost-efficient and environmentally friendly catalysts for electrochemical fields.