Porous CeO₂/CuO Heterostructure for Efficient Hydrogen Evolution Reaction in an Acidic Medium

A composite electrocatalyst CeO₂/CuO is fabricated for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) via a simple, facile, one-step hydrothermal method, using F-127 as a template and structure directing agent. The prepared composite CeO₂/CuO shows top-notch HER activities with a small overpotential of 98 mV at 10 mA cm^-2 and just 160 mV overpotential to attain a current density of 50 mA cm^-2 with good stability for 20 h in an acidic medium. The enhanced catalytic activities of CeO₂/CuO nanocomposite are attributed to their synergetic interface interaction, which lead to improved conductivity, reactive sites, and oxygen vacancies in their lattices. This study aims to advance the development of earth-abundant transition metal oxides-based electrocatalysts as economical, durable, and efficient HER electrocatalysts to replace noble metal-based materials in the future.