Free-standing two-dimensional ruthenium-beryllium nanosheets for alkaline hydrogen evolution

To design and synthesize materials for alkaline hydrogen evolution is favorable for industrial hydrogen cycle operation. In this study, we present a facile approach to synthesize free-standing ruthenium-beryllium (RuBe) nanosheets, which possess amorphous phase state and associated with holey structures due to the molten method. The two-dimensional RuBe nanosheets exhibit improved activity than pure Ru counterpart and comparable properties to commercial Pt toward hydrogen evolution reaction in both of alkaline and neutral electrolytes. Based on the experiments and density functional theory calculations, it is suggested that the adsorption and dissociation of water molecules on Ru-based catalyst are much enhanced with the assistance of Be modulation, which are essential for the improved hydrogen production capability under alkaline condition. This work broadens the Ru-based catalyst family and may provide new insights for electrocatalyst development.