In Situ Growth of Pt-doped Cu2O on Copper Foam for Efficient Alkaline Hydrogen Evolution

Platinum is widely regarded as one of the best catalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), however, its scarcity and high-cost limit large-scale applications. Electrochemical catalysts with low platinum loading, striking a balance between cost-effectiveness and superior HER performance, have attracted considerable attention. Here a facile and low-temperature synthesis, combining the impregnation method with the corrosion method, and obtained low-Pt-doped Cu 2 O (Pt-Cu 2 O) grown in situ on copper foam in only 2 h. After Pt doping, the electrons flow from O to Cu sites, which further optimizes the hydrogen adsorption free energy of Cu sites. Finally, The Pt-Cu 2 O with low Pt content exhibits ultralow HER overpotentials of 24 mV at the current densities of 10 mA cm –2 in alkaline media, which was better than commercial 20 wt% Pt/C. This research may provide a simple and low-energy approach method for the development of high-activity and low-Pt-loading self-supporting electrocatalysts.