Nickel sulfide (Ni3S2) is a promising hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) catalyst by virtue of its metallic electrical conductivity and excellent stability in alkaline medium. However, the reported catalytic activities for Ni3S2are still relatively low. Herein, an effective strategy to boost the H adsorption capability and HER performance of Ni3S2through nitrogen (N) doping is demonstrated. N‐doped Ni3S2nanosheets achieve a fairly low overpotential of 155 mV at 10 mA cm−2and an excellent exchange current density of 0.42 mA cm−2in 1.0
Fine Tuning Electronic Structure of Catalysts through Atomic Engineering for Enhanced Hydrogen Evolution
An efficient, durable, and low‐cost hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) catalyst is an essential requirement for practical hydrogen production. Herein, an effective approach to facilitate the HER kinetics of molybdenum carbide (Mo2C) electrocatalysts is presented by tuning its electronic structure through atomic engineering of nitrogen implantation. Starting from the organoimido‐derivatized polyoxometalate nanoclusters with inherent Mo-N bonds, the formation of N‐implanted Mo2C (N@Mo2C) nanocrystals with perfectly adjustable amounts of N atoms is demonstrated. The optimized N@Mo2C electrocatalyst exhibits remarkable HER performance and good stability over 20 h in both acid and basic electrolytes. Further density functional theory calculations show that engineering suitable nitrogen atoms into Mo2C can regulate its electronic structure well and decrease Mo-H strength, leading to a great enhancement.
more »
« less
- Award ID(s):
- 1704992
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10093795
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Advanced energy materials
- Issue:
- 8
- ISSN:
- 1614-6832
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 1800789
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
more » « less
Abstract m KOH electrolyte. The mass activity of 16.9 mA mg−1and turnover frequency of 2.4 s−1obtained at 155 mV are significantly higher than the values reported for other Ni3S2‐based HER catalysts, and comparable to the performance of best HER catalysts in alkaline medium. These experimental data together with theoretical analysis suggest that the outstanding catalytic activity of N‐doped Ni3S2is due to the enriched active sites with favorable H adsorption free energy. The activity in the Ni3S2is highly correlated with the coordination number of the surface S atoms and the charge depletion of neighbor Ni atoms. These new findings provide important guidance for future experimental design and synthesis of optimal HER catalysts. -
Single-atom catalysts (SACs) maximize the utility efficiency of metal atoms and offer great potential for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Bimetal atom catalysts are an appealing strategy in virtue of the synergistic interaction of neighboring metal atoms, which can further improve the intrinsic HER activity beyond SACs. However, the rational design of these systems remains conceptually challenging and requires in-depth research both experimentally and theoretically. Here, we develop a dual-atom catalyst (DAC) consisting of O-coordinated W-Mo heterodimer embedded in N-doped graphene (W 1 Mo 1 -NG), which is synthesized by controllable self-assembly and nitridation processes. In W 1 Mo 1 -NG, the O-bridged W-Mo atoms are anchored in NG vacancies through oxygen atoms with W─O─Mo─O─C configuration, resulting in stable and finely distribution. The W 1 Mo 1 -NG DAC enables Pt-like activity and ultrahigh stability for HER in pH-universal electrolyte. The electron delocalization of W─O─Mo─O─C configuration provides optimal adsorption strength of H and boosts the HER kinetics, thereby notably promoting the intrinsic activity.more » « less
-
Rational design and facile preparation of non-noble trifunctional electrocatalysts with high performance, low cost and strong durability for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) are highly demanded, but remain as a big challenge. Herein, we report a spontaneous gas-foaming method to prepare nitrogen doped ultrathin carbon nanosheets (NCNs) by simply pyrolysing a mixture of citric acid and NH 4 Cl. Under the optimized pyrolysis temperature (carbonized at 1000 °C) and mass ratio of precursors (1 : 1), the synthesized NCN-1000-5 sample possesses an ultrathin sheet structure, an ultrahigh specific surface area (1793 m 2 g −1 ), and rich edge defects, and exhibits low overpotential and robust stability for the ORR, OER and HER. By means of density functional theory (DFT) computations, we revealed that the intrinsic active sites for the ORR, OER and HER are the carbon atoms located at the armchair edge and adjacent to the graphitic N dopants. When practically used as a catalyst in rechargeable Zn–air batteries, a high energy density (806 W h kg −1 ), a low charge/discharge voltage gap (0.77 V) and an ultralong cycle life (over 330 h) were obtained at 10 mA cm −2 for NCN-1000-5. This work not only presents a versatile strategy to develop advanced carbon materials with ultrahigh specific surface area and abundant edge defects, but also provides useful guidance for designing and developing multifunctional metal-free catalysts for various energy-related electrocatalytic reactions.more » « less
-
Structural analyses of the compounds di-μ-acetato-κ 4 O : O ′-bis{[2-methoxy- N , N -bis(quinolin-2-ylmethyl)ethanamine-κ 4 N , N ′, N ′′, O ]manganese(II)} bis(tetraphenylborate) dichloromethane 1.45-solvate, [Mn 2 (C 23 O 2 ) 2 (C 23 H 23 N 3 O) 2 ](C 24 H 20 B)·1.45CH 2 Cl 2 or [Mn(DQMEA)(μ-OAc) 2 Mn(DQMEA)](BPh 4 ) 2 ·1.45CH 2 Cl 2 or [1] (BPh 4 ) 2 ·1.45CH 2 Cl 2 , and (acetato-κ O )[2-hydroxy- N , N -bis(quinolin-2-ylmethyl)ethanamine-κ 4 N , N ′, N ′′, O ](methanol-κ O )manganese(II) tetraphenylborate methanol monosolvate, [Mn(CH 3 COO)(C 22 H 21 N 3 O)(CH 3 OH)](C 24 H 20 B)·CH 3 OH or [Mn(DQEA)(OAc)(CH 3 OH)]BPh 4 ·CH 3 OH or [2] BPh 4 ·CH 3 OH, by single-crystal X-ray diffraction reveal distinct differences in the geometry of coordination of the tripodal DQEA and DQMEA ligands to Mn II ions. In the asymmetric unit, compound [1] (BPh 4 ) 2 ·(CH 2 Cl 2 ) 1.45 crystallizes as a dimer in which each manganese(II) center is coordinated by the central amine nitrogen, the nitrogen atom of each quinoline group, and the methoxy-oxygen of the tetradentate DQMEA ligand, and two bridging-acetate oxygen atoms. The symmetric Mn II centers have a distorted, octahedral geometry in which the quinoline nitrogen atoms are trans to each other resulting in co-planarity of the quinoline rings. For each Mn II center, a coordinated acetate oxygen participates in C—H...O hydrogen-bonding interactions with the two quinolyl moieties, further stabilizing the trans structure. Within the crystal, weak π – π stacking interactions and intermolecular cation–anion interactions stabilize the crystal packing. In the asymmetric unit, compound [2] BPh 4 ·CH 3 OH crystallizes as a monomer in which the manganese(II) ion is coordinated to the central nitrogen, the nitrogen atom of each quinoline group, and the alcohol oxygen of the tetradentate DQEA ligand, an oxygen atom of OAc, and the oxygen atom of a methanol ligand. The geometry of the Mn II center in [2] BPh 4 ·CH 3 OH is also a distorted octahedron, but the quinoline nitrogen atoms are cis to each other in this structure. Hydrogen bonding between the acetate oxygen atoms and hydroxyl (O—H...O) and quinolyl (C—H...O and N—H...O) moieties of the DQEA ligand stabilize the complex in this cis configuration. Within the crystal, dimerization of complexes occurs by the formation of a pair of intermolecular O3—H3...O2 hydrogen bonds between the coordinated hydroxyl oxygen of the DQEA ligand of one complex and an acetate oxygen of another. Additional hydrogen-bonding and intermolecular cation–anion interactions contribute to the crystal packing.more » « less
-
Cisplatin, (NH 3 ) 2 PtCl 2 , has been known as a successful metal-based anticancer drug for more than half a century. Its analogue, Argplatin, arginine-linked cisplatin, (Arg)PtCl 2 , is being investigated because it exhibits reactivity towards DNA and RNA that differs from that of cisplatin. In order to understand the basis for its altered reactivity, the deprotonated and sodium cationized forms of Argplatin, [(Arg-H)PtCl 2 ] − and [(Arg)PtCl 2 + Na] + , are examined by infrared multiple photon dissociation (IRMPD) action spectroscopy in the IR fingerprint and hydrogen-stretching regions. Complementary electronic structure calculations are performed using density functional theory approaches to characterize the stable structures of these complexes and to predict their infrared spectra. Comparison of the theoretical IR spectra predicted for various stable conformations of these Argplatin complexes to their measured IRMPD spectra enables determination of the binding mode(s) of Arg to the Pt metal center to be identified. Arginine is found to bind to Pt in a bidentate fashion to the backbone amino nitrogen and carboxylate oxygen atoms in both the [(Arg-H)PtCl 2 ] − and [(Arg)PtCl 2 + Na] + complexes, the NO − binding mode. The neutral side chain of Arg also interacts with the Pt center to achieve additional stabilization in the [(Arg-H)PtCl 2 ] − complex. In contrast, Na + binds to both chlorido ligands in the [(Arg)PtCl 2 + Na] + complex and the protonated side chain of Arg is stabilized via hydrogen-bonding interactions with the carboxylate moiety. These findings are consistent with condensed-phase results, indicating that the NO − binding mode of arginine to Pt is preserved in the electrospray ionization process even under variable pH and ionic strength.more » « less
- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
-
Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- The DOI is not currently available.
