Abstract

Hydrogen is regarded as the most promising fuel to replace conventional fossil fuel. The electrochemical production of hydrogen requires catalyst and development of efficient non-Pt catalysts or catalysts with low Pt content are in demand. Herein, we demonstrate the photochemical synthesis of a hydrogen evolution electrocatalyst poly(α-terthiophene)-Pt nanoparticle hybrid material (polyTT-Pt) of low Pt content and its electrocatalytic activity. The synthesis of polyTT-Pt hybrid material involves the photoinduced electron transfer between α-terthiophene (α-TT) and PtCl62− and the subsequent in situ growth of polymer and Pt nanoparticles. The irradiation of the mixture of α-TT and PtCl62− with sunlamp initiates the oxidative polymerization and reduction of Pt complex to Pt nanoparticles. The polymer has cabbage-like microstructure and the in situ grown Pt nanoparticles have an average size of 1.8 nm. The Pt nanoparticles are embedded into the polymer matrix as well as randomly distributed over the polymer. The hybrid material contains 2.91 wt% of Pt and it shows characteristic electrochemical signature with an electrochemically active surface area of 35.7 m2/gPt. The hybrid material polyTT-Pt is electrocatalytically highly active though it contains very small amount of Pt. It efficiently catalyses hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and the bench mark current density of 10 mA/cm2 is achieved at an overpotential of 67 mV. The mass activity of the hybrid catalyst is 1172 mA/mgPt at the overpotential of 67 mV. The high activity is ascribed to the high electronic conductivity of the polymer matrix, facile access of electrolyte due to the embedded small nanoparticles and the presence of large number of catalytically active Pt sites. Tafel analysis suggests that the HER follows the Volmer-Tafel mechanism.

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call

Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.