Controllable synthesis of CoFe2Se4/NiCo2Se4 hybrid nanotubes with heterointerfaces and improved oxygen evolution reaction performance

The rational construction of heterointerfaces in hollow nanohybrids is considered as a promising and challenging approach for enhancing their electrocatalytic performance. Herein, we demonstrate the synthesis of CoFe2Se4/NiCo2Se4 hybrid nanotubes (CFSe/NCSe HNTs) with open ends and abundant heterointerfaces. The CFSe/NCSe HNT hybrid nanotubes are obtained by using NiCo2-aspartic acid nanofibres (NiCo-Asp NFs) as the templates which can be converted to the CFSe/NCSe HNTs via proton etching, three metal coprecipitation, Kirkendall effect and anion-exchange reaction. The CFSe/NCSe HNTs may function as the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts, and they exhibit a low overpotential of 224 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm−2 and outstanding stability with only 1.4% current density change even after 15 h, superior to those of the reported single-component counterparts. The obtained density of states and differential charge density confirm the existence of a heterointerface which can induce the accumulation of electrons at the interface of CFSe–NCSe and consequently increase the carrier density and electrical conductivity of the CFSe/NCSe HNTs. This research provides a new avenue for the fabrication of hollow nanohybrids with heterointerfaces.