An inclusive review on the synthesis of molybdenum carbide and its hybrids as catalyst for electrochemical water splitting

Abstract

The world is using lot of fossil fuels due to increase in energy demand. This results in high production of CO2 which is the main reason for global warming and harmful for the environment. These issues have driven the scientists to develop environment friendly alternative energies to replace these harmful fuels. Hydrogen has become one of the most promising fuels which are environment friendly and sustainable. To produce this green and clean source of energy, electrochemical water splitting has become one of the most suitable routes. For the efficient hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) an active catalyst is required to achieve high conversion efficiency. Many catalysts have been reported in the literature for hydrogen production through different methods. But Molybdenum carbide (Mo2C) has attracted a lot of attention and attraction to produce hydrogen through HER due to its high surface activity and electrochemical properties. In this review, the recent research progress has been reported on the Mo2C for HER mechanism. Different methods for the synthesis of Mo2C and its hybrid has been discussed extensively, along with different strategies to modify the physicochemical properties of Mo2C and its hybrid. Furthermore, the application of Mo2C related to its activity, durability, activation, and deactivation mechanism of the catalyst are critically reviewed. It is concluded that by the addition of another component in Mo2C can enhance the activity of the catalyst and gives more conversion rate. Hence, it realizes that Mo2C certainly can be used as an alternative catalyst for hydrogen production via water splitting.