A Self-Reconstructed Bifunctional Electrocatalyst of Pseudo-Amorphous Nickel Carbide @ Iron Oxide Network for...

Here, a sol-gel method is used to prepare a Prussian blue analogue (NiFe-PBA) precursor with a 2D network, which is further annealed to an Fe₃ O₄ /NiC_x composite (NiFe-PBA-gel-cal), inheriting the ultrahigh specific surface area of the parent structure. When the composite is used as both anode and cathode catalyst for overall water splitting, it requires low voltages of 1.57 and 1.66 V to provide a current density of 100 mA cm^-2 in alkaline freshwater and simulated seawater, respectively, exhibiting no obvious attenuation over a 50 h test. Operando Raman spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy indicate that NiOOH_2-x active species containing high-valence Ni³⁺ /Ni⁴⁺ are in situ generated from NiC_x during the water oxidation. Density functional theory calculations combined with ligand field theory reveal that the role of high valence states of Ni is to trigger the production of localized O 2p electron holes, acting as electrophilic centers for the activation of redox reactions for oxygen evolution reaction. After hydrogen evolution reaction, a series of ex situ and in situ investigations indicate the reduction from Fe³⁺ to Fe²⁺ and the evolution of Ni(OH)₂ are the origin of the high activity.