Harnessing Wrinkles in Pt-Doped Pd Metallenes for Enhanced Hydrogen Evolution
Wenbo Li1, Yanyan Jia1, Mengyue Gao1
1Key Laboratory for Advanced Materials and Feringa Nobel Prize Scientist Joint Research Center, School of Chemistry & Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, P.R. China.
Nano Letters
|March 5, 2026
Summary
Strain-induced wrinkles in 2D materials create synergistic active sites. This wrinkle engineering strategy enhances catalytic performance for the hydrogen evolution reaction, offering a new design route for electrocatalysts.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Catalysis
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Strain relaxation in 2D materials causes wrinkles, affecting electronic and mechanical properties.
- Wrinkles in 2D materials can modify catalytic behavior.
- Developing efficient electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution is crucial for clean energy.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate strain-induced wrinkling as a strategy for creating synergistic active sites.
- To enhance the catalytic performance of Pt-doped Pd metallenes for the hydrogen evolution reaction.
- To explore the relationship between material geometry and electronic properties in catalysis.
Main Methods:
- Controlled platinum (Pt) doping in palladium (Pd) metallenes to induce lattice mismatch and internal stress.
- Characterization techniques to analyze wrinkle formation and active site integration.
- Electrochemical measurements to evaluate catalytic performance for the hydrogen evolution reaction.
Main Results:
- Spontaneous wrinkle formation was achieved through controlled Pt doping.
- Wrinkled regions demonstrated integrated electron transfer and localized strain effects, acting as efficient active sites.
- The optimized Pt5.0-Pd metallene exhibited an ultralow overpotential of 18 mV at 10 mA cm-2, outperforming commercial benchmarks.
Conclusions:
- Wrinkle engineering is a key strategy for tuning the catalytic performance of 2D metallenes.
- The synergy between geometry and electronic effects in wrinkled regions lowers activation barriers for catalysis.
- This work provides a rational design route for advanced 2D electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction.
