Ternary boron-, phosphorus- and oxygen-doped amorphous nickel nanoalloys for enhanced activity towards the oxygen evolution reaction

The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is a key reaction in hydrogen production through water splitting and in fuel cells. Nickel nanoalloys are potential low-cost OER electrocatalysts, but their catalytic activity and stability need to be improved. The doping of nickel catalysts with anionic elements combined with partial amorphization can improve their electrocatalytic activity. In this study, we report a ternary B-, P- and O-doped amorphous nickel nanoalloy (BPO-Ni) as an effective electrocatalyst for the OER. Compared with binary boron–oxygen-doped nickel (BO-Ni) and phosphorus–oxygen-doped nickel (PO-Ni), ternary BPO-Ni has higher OER catalytic activity and better durability under alkaline conditions. Our results reveal that the high catalytic activity of the B-, P- and O-doped Ni nanoalloy is derived from the synergistic effects between the ternary heteroatoms and the Ni atoms, thereby increasing their catalytic activity. This work produces a new non-metal doped amorphous nickel nanoalloy structure, and offers a way of studying novel inexpensive and efficient OER catalysts.