Surface-neutralization engineered NiCo-LDH/phosphate hetero-sheets toward robust oxygen evolution reaction

Developing highly active oxygen evolution reaction(OER)electrocatalysts with robust durability is essential in producing high-purity hydrogen through water electrolysis.Layered double hydroxide(LDH)based catalysts have demonstrated efficient catalytic performance toward the relatively sluggish OER.By considering the promotion effect of phosphate(Pi)on proton transfer,herein,a facile phosphate acid(PA)surface-neutralization strategy is developed to in-situ construct NiCo-LDH/NiCoPi hetero-sheets toward OER catalysis.OER activity of NiCoLDH is significantly boosted due to the proton promotion effect and the electronic modulation effect of NiCoPi.As a result,the facilely prepared NiCo-LDH/NiCoPi catalyst displays superior OER catalytic activity with a low overpotential of 300 mV to deliver 100 mA cm^(-2)OER and a Tafel slope of 73 mV dec^(-1).Furthermore,no visible activity decay is detected after a 200-h continuous OER operation.The present work,therefore,provides a promising strategy to exploit robust OER electrocatalysts for commercial water electrolysers.

Phosphorus oxoanion-intercalated layered double hydroxides for high-performance oxygen evolution

Rational design and controlled fabrication of efficient and cost-effective electrodes for the oxygen evolution reaction （OER） are critical for addressing the unpre- cedented energy crisis. Nickel-iron layered double hydroxides （NiFe-LDHs） with specific interlayer anions （i.e. phosphate, phosphite, and hypophosphite） were fabricated by a co-predpitation method and investigated as oxygen evolution electrocatalysts. Intercalation of the phosphorus oxoanion enhanced the OER activity in an alkaline solution; the optimal performance （i.e., a low onset potential of 215 mV, a small Tafel slope of 37.7 mV/dec, and stable electrochemical behavior） was achieved with the hypophosphite-intercalated NiFe-LDH catalyst, demonstrating dramatic enhancement over the traditional carbonate-intercalated NiFe-LDH in terms of activity and durability. This enhanced performance is attributed to the interaction between the intercalated phosphorous oxoanions and the edge-sharing MO6 （M = Ni, Fe） layers, which modifies the surface electronic structure of the Ni sites. This concept should be inspiring for the design of more effective LDH-based oxygen evolution electrocatalvsts.