Synthesis and electrocatalytic applications of flower-like motifs and associated composites of nitrogen-enriched tungsten nitride(W2N3)

We have sought to improve the electrocatalytic performance of tungsten nitride through synthetic control over chemical composition and morphology.In particular,we have generated a thermodynamically unstable but catalytically promising nitrogen-rich phase of tungsten via a hydrothermal generation of a tungsten oxide intermediate and subsequent annealing in ammonia.The net product consisted of three-dimensional(3D)micron-scale flower-like motifs of W2N3;this architecture not only evinced high structural stability but also incorporated the favorable properties of constituent two-dimensional nanosheets.From a performance perspective,as-prepared 3D W2N3 demonstrated promising hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)activities,especially in an acidic environment with a measured overpotential value of−101 mV at a current density of 10 mA/cm^2.To further enhance the electrocatalytic activity,small amounts of precious metal nanoparticles(such as Pt and Au),consisting of variable sizes,were uniformly deposited onto the underlying 3D W2N3 motifs using a facile direct deposition method;these composites were applied towards the CO2 reduction reaction(CO2RR).A highlight of this series of experiments was that Au/W2N3 composites were found to be a much more active HER(as opposed to either a CO2RR or a methanol oxidation reaction(MOR))catalyst.