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Guanine-Assisted Contrived Low Pt-Integrated Mo2C/C for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction
Tapan Ping1,2, Smruti Vardhan Purohit1,2, Sushant P Sahu3
1Materials Chemistry Department, CSIR-Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology, Bhubaneswar, Odisha 751013, India.
Langmuir : the ACS Journal of Surfaces and Colloids
|January 28, 2025
Summary
Researchers developed a low-platinum catalyst (1 wt % Pt/Mo2C/C) for efficient hydrogen evolution reactions (HERs). This novel material demonstrates high stability and Pt-like performance, paving the way for scalable green hydrogen production.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Electrochemistry
- Catalysis
Background:
- High cost of platinum (Pt) hinders large-scale hydrogen production via water electrolysis.
- Efficient hydrogen evolution reactions (HERs) are crucial for renewable energy and sustainable hydrogen generation.
- Developing stable, cost-effective electrocatalysts with Pt-like properties is essential.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize and characterize a novel low-Pt catalyst (1 wt % Pt/Mo2C/C) for enhanced HER activity.
- To investigate the structural and electronic properties influencing the catalyst's performance.
- To assess the catalyst's efficiency and long-term stability for potential industrial applications.
Main Methods:
- Facile synthesis of 1 wt % Pt/Mo2C/C via guanine-assisted, solid-state calcination, and chemical reduction.
- Characterization using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) to determine Pt loading.
- Electrochemical testing to evaluate HER activity, overpotential, Tafel slope, and long-term stability.
- Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations to understand active sites and hydrogen adsorption energy (ΔGH*).
Main Results:
- The synthesized 1 wt % Pt/Mo2C/C catalyst exhibited superior HER activity compared to commercial Pt/C.
- Achieved a low overpotential of 19 mV at 10 mA cm-2 with a Tafel slope of 28 mV/dec.
- Demonstrated excellent long-term stability, operating for 42 hours in 0.5 M H2SO4.
- DFT calculations confirmed reduced hydrogen adsorption energy (ΔGH* = -0.06 eV) on the Pt-integrated Mo2C/C, indicating higher catalytic activity.
Conclusions:
- The guanine-assisted synthesis provides a scalable method for producing highly efficient, low-Pt catalysts.
- The synergistic effect between Pt, Mo2C, and N-doped carbon enhances catalytic performance for HER.
- This work offers a promising pathway towards cost-effective and scalable hydrogen generation through electrochemical water splitting.
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