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Updated: Sep 22, 2025
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Simple Methods for the Preparation of Non-noble Metal Bulk-electrodes for Electrocatalytic Applications
Published on: June 21, 2017
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Element immiscibility assisted Ru@Ni3B as an efficient electrocatalyst toward alkaline and acidic hydrogen evolution
Yin'an Zhu1, Jia Yao1, Xu Zhong1
1School of Materials Science and Engineering, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Advanced Metallic Materials, Southeast University, Nanjing 211189, China. panye@seu.edu.cn.
Chemical Communications (Cambridge, England)
|May 24, 2022
Summary
Ruthenium-modified nickel boride (Ru@Ni3B) catalysts show excellent performance for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). These catalysts offer a cost-effective alternative to platinum, demonstrating high stability in acidic and alkaline conditions.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Electrochemistry
- Catalysis
Background:
- The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is crucial for clean energy production.
- Platinum-based catalysts are highly effective but expensive for HER.
- Developing efficient and cost-effective HER electrocatalysts is a key research area.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize novel ruthenium-modified nickel boride (Ru@Ni3B) materials.
- To evaluate their electrocatalytic activity and stability for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER).
- To explore strategies for improving the atomic utilization efficiency of noble metals in HER catalysis.
Main Methods:
- Facile one-step dealloying synthesis of xRu@Ni3B (x = 0, 0.2, 0.5, 1.0) materials.
- Electrochemical characterization including overpotential measurements at -20 mA cm-2.
- Long-term stability testing (24 hours) in both acidic and alkaline media.
Main Results:
- 1.0Ru@Ni3B exhibited low overpotentials of 40 ± 0.2 mV (acidic) and 72 ± 0.3 mV (alkaline) for HER at -20 mA cm-2.
- Performance of 1.0Ru@Ni3B is comparable or superior to platinum foil.
- The catalyst demonstrated excellent catalytic and chemical stability over 24 hours of testing.
Conclusions:
- Ruthenium-modified nickel boride (Ru@Ni3B) is a highly promising electrocatalyst for the hydrogen evolution reaction.
- This material offers a cost-effective and stable alternative to platinum-based catalysts.
- The synthesis method provides a viable strategy for enhancing the efficiency of noble metal utilization in catalysis.
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