Few Layered N, P Dual‐Doped Carbon‐Encapsulated Ultrafine MoP Nanocrystal/MoP Cluster Hybrids on Carbon Cloth: An Ultrahigh Active and Durable 3D Self‐Supported Integrated Electrode for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction in a Wide pH Range

Abstract

AbstractDevelopment of highly active and stable electrocatalysts is a key to realize efficient hydrogen evolution through water electrolysis. Here, the development of a 3D self‐supported integrated electrode constituting few layered N, P dual‐doped carbon‐encapsulated ultrafine MoP nanocrystal/MoP cluster hybrids on carbon cloth (FLNPC@MoP‐NC/MoP‐C/CC) is demonstrated. Benefiting from novel structural features including fully open and accessible nanoporosity, ultrasmall size of MoP‐NCs on MoP‐Cs as well as strong synergistic effects of N, P dual‐doped carbon layers with MoP‐NCs, the FLNPC@MoP‐NC/MoP‐C/CC as a 3D self‐supported binder‐free integrated electrode exhibits extraordinary catalytic activity for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) with extremely low overpotentials at all pH values ( j = 10 mA cm−2 at η = 74, 106, and 69 mV in 0.5 m H2SO4, 1.0 m PBS, and 1.0 m KOH electrolytes, respectively). To the best of our knowledge, the ultrahigh electrocatalytic performance represents one of the best MoP‐based HER electrocatalysts reported so far. Additionally, few layered N, P dual‐doped carbon can effectively prevent MoP‐NC/MoP‐C from corrosion, making the FLNPC@MoP‐NC/MoP‐C/CC exhibit nearly unfading stability after 50 h testing in acidic, neutral, and alkaline media, which shows great promise for electrocatalytic water splitting application.