Metal/Oxide Interface Nanostructures Generated by Surface Segregation for Electrocatalysis.
Strong metal/oxide interactions have been acknowledged to play prominent roles in chemical catalysis in the gas phase, but remain as an unexplored area in electrocatalysis in the liquid phase. Utilization of metal/oxide interface structures could generate high performance electrocatalysts for clean energy storage and conversion. However, building highly dispersed nanoscale metal/oxide interfaces on conductive scaffolds remains a significant challenge. Here, we report a novel strategy to create metal/oxide interface nanostructures by growing mixed metal oxide nanoparticles on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and then selectively promoting migration of one of the metal ions to the surface of the oxide nanoparticles and simultaneous reduction to metal. Employing this strategy, we have synthesized Ni/CeO2 nanointerfaces coupled with CNTs. The Ni/CeO2 interface promotes hydrogen evolution catalysis by facilitating water dissociation and modifying the hydrogen binding energy. The Ni/CeO2-CNT hybrid material exhibits superior activity for hydrogen evolution as a result of synergistic effects including strong metal/oxide interactions, inorganic/carbon coupling, and particle size control.
Zhe
Z
Weng
Wen
W
Liu
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Shenyang 110016, China.
Li-Chang
LC
Yin
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Shenyang 110016, China.
Ruopian
R
Fang
Min
M
Li
Eric I
EI
Altman
Qi
Q
Fan
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Shenyang 110016, China.
Feng
F
Li
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Shenyang 110016, China.
Hui-Ming
HM
Cheng
Hailiang
H
Wang
electrocatalysis; hydrogen evolution; metal/oxide interface; surface segregation