RuRh Bimetallene Nanoring as High-efficiency pH-Universal Catalyst for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrochemistry
• Catalysis

Background:

• Electrocatalysis of the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is crucial for clean energy technologies.
• Developing efficient and stable catalysts is a significant challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and synthesize a novel bimetallic nanoring catalyst for enhanced HER performance.
• To investigate the catalytic activity and stability of the new material across various pH conditions.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of RuRh2 bimetallene nanorings using a mixed-solvent strategy.
• Electrocatalytic testing for HER performance in acidic, alkaline, and neutral media.
• Atomic-scale structure observation and density functional theory (DFT) calculations.

Main Results:

• The RuRh2 bimetallene nanoring catalyst exhibited superior HER mass activity compared to commercial Pt catalysts.
• The catalyst demonstrated excellent stability over 30,000 potential cycles in acidic media.
• High catalytic activity was observed in alkaline and neutral media, surpassing other reported HER catalysts.

Conclusions:

• The RuRh2 bimetallene nanoring, with its structural defects like grain boundaries and symmetry breaking, enhances HER performance.
• These defects facilitate hydrogen adsorption, electron transfer, and reactant adsorption, boosting efficiency across all pH values.