Incorporation of CeO2 with Ni-Co mixed metal phosphide boosts electrochemical seawater oxidation performance

Electrochemical seawater oxidation has been regarded as one of the most promising strategies for cost-efficient production of hydrogen from the standpoint of sustainability, but suffers from a competitive chlorine evolution/oxidation reaction. Herein, we report a facile hard templated route to fabricate CeO2 incorporated Ni-Co mixed metal phosphide embedded in a carbon matrix (CeO2-Co2-xNixP@C). Benefiting from compositional and structural features, the obtained CeO2-Co2-xNixP@C possesses remarkably improved OER performance in 1 M KOH (eta = 295 mV at 10 mA cm(-2)) compared with Co2-xNixP@C. More importantly, the catalytic activity and stability is retained well after changing fresh water to seawater to constitute the working electrolyte. The promotion effect of CeO2 can be attributed to its unique capability in regulating the surface state of catalysts, contributing to efficient inhibition of chlorine competition.

Automated summary

A facile hard templated route to fabricate CeO2 incorporated Ni-Co mixed metal phosphide embedded in a carbon matrix (CeO2-Co2-xNixP@C) is reported. The obtained CeO2-Co2-xNixP@C exhibits remarkably improved OER performance and retains good catalytic activity and stability in seawater, benefiting from the promotion effect of CeO2 in inhibiting chlorine competition.