Hydrogen spillover by boron carbon nitride support for efficient acidic hydrogen evolution reaction

Hydrogen spillover in supported metal electrocatalysts has garnered considerable attention due to its potential to bypass the constraints set by the Sabatier principle and improve the performance of hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) processes. Nonetheless, reducing the energy barriers associated with hydrogen spillover remains a challenge. In this study, we designed a boron carbon nitride (BCN) material as a support for Pt (Pt/BCN), aiming to lower the reaction barriers of hydrogen spillover and serve as an efficient HER electrocatalyst in acidic media. In the HER process, Pt/BCN achieved 10 mA cm −2 at 26 mV, with a Tafel slope of 24 mV dec −1 , and also demonstrated outstanding stability. Electrochemical analyses, in-situ Raman spectroscopy, and density functional theory calculations demonstrated that adsorbed H* species migrate from Pt to BCN via a hydrogen spillover mechanism, thereby accelerating the H* desorption kinetics. Furthermore, applied as the cathode in a proton exchange membrane electrolyzer, Pt/BCN achieved 0.5 A cm −2 at a cell voltage of 1.67 V and maintained stable operation for over 60 h. This study provides new insights into developing efficient HER electrocatalysts for acidic media by optimizing hydrogen spillover effects.