Ultra-low Pt induced amorphous/crystalline heterophase Pt-Co2P hollow nanotubes for superior water electrolysis at industrial temperatures

Evaluating water electrolysis at industrial temperatures can effectively facilitate the practical application of the catalysts for hydrogen generation. Here, amorphous/crystalline heterophase Pt-Co 2 P hollow nanotubes with ultra-low Pt content of 0.1 wt% are triumphantly constructed. Benefiting from “superaerophobic” hollow nanotube architecture, the heterophase Pt-Co 2 P catalyst displays small overpotential (52.8 mV at 10 mA cm −2 ), low Tafel slope (68.9 mV dec -1 ) and long-term stability for hydrogen evolution reaction. Its mass activity (16.95 mA μg -1 Pt ) is nearly two times larger than Pt/C at 70 mV overpotential. Moreover, the Pt-Co 2 P||Co 2 P electrolyzer just requires 1.32 V to reach 10 mA cm −2 at industrial temperature (65 °C). Density functional theory (DFT) calculations disclose that after the introduction of Pt in Co 2 P, the d-band central of Co and hydrogen adsorption bader charge are downshifted, significantly improving the initial H* desorption. This work provides a neoteric thought to develop the electrocatalysts with peachy quality for water splitting.