Abstract
The electrolysis of water is considered to be a primary method for the mass production of hydrogen on a large scale, as a substitute for unsustainable fossil fuels in the future. However, it is highly restricted by the sluggish kinetics of the four-electron process of the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Therefore, there is quite an urgent need to develop efficient, abundant, and economical electrocatalysts. Transition metal carbides (TMCs) have recently been recognized as promising electrocatalysts for OER due to their excellent activity, conductivity, and stability. In this review, widely-accepted evaluation parameters and measurement criteria for different electrocatalysts are discussed. Moreover, five sorts of TMC electrocatalysts—including NiC, tungsten carbide (WC), Fe3C, MoC, and MXene—as well as their hybrids, are researched in terms of their morphology and compounds. Additionally, the synthetic methods are summarized. Based on the existing materials, strategies for improving the catalytic ability and new designs of electrocatalysts are put forward. Finally, the future development of TMC materials is discussed both experimentally and theoretically, and feasible modification approaches and prospects of a reliable mechanism are referred to, which would be instructive for designing other effective noble-free electrocatalysts for OER.
Highlights
With the development of science and technology, the contradiction between the increasing demand for resources and the limitations of traditional energy has become increasingly prominent
The results show that, among the two samples obtained, Co/W-C@NCNSs (800 ◦ C) has better electrocatalytic activities, with an overpotential of 323 mV at a current density of 10 mA·cm−2 in the oxygen evolution reaction (OER)
The overpotential is not low enough compared with some noble-metal-based electrocatalysts, it has great potential to become an efficient electrocatalyst toward OER
Summary
With the development of science and technology, the contradiction between the increasing demand for resources and the limitations of traditional energy has become increasingly prominent. Researchers have been trying to find technologies for large-scale hydrogen production, but almost all of these methods, including the alkaline water splitting reaction, metal–air battery, and fuel cell, inevitably rely on a dual electrode system. Speaking, this kind of system consists of two parts: The oxygen reduction reaction We make a brief summary of the whole research field, and put forward new views on the material synthesis, morphology and structure, hybrid method, theoretical development, and mechanism in different conditions of OER electrocatalysts, in order to benefit future research
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