In-situ construction of water-soluble C60 derivative modified cobalt phosphides for efficient electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution in acidic and alkaline media

A zero-dimensional water-soluble ethylenediamine-functionalized C60 derivative (C60(en)n) was used to be in-situ supported on the surface of cobalt phosphides (CoP-Co2P), forming a highly efficient heterostructured electrocatalytic catalyst for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Benefiting from the strong interfacial electronic interaction between C60(en)n and CoP-Co2P, the composite exhibits an exceptional catalytic performance with overpotentials of 129 and 117 mV to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm-2, and Tafel slopes of 59 and 72 mV dec- 1 in acidic and alkaline conditions, respectively.

Automated summary

A highly efficient heterostructured electrocatalytic catalyst for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) was formed by in-situ supporting a zero-dimensional water-soluble ethylenediamine-functionalized C60 derivative (C60(en)n) on the surface of cobalt phosphides (CoP-Co2P). The composite exhibited exceptional catalytic performance with low overpotentials and small Tafel slopes in both acidic and alkaline conditions.