Synergizing ternary CoMoW alloy with CeO2 for enhancing electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution

Abstract

Integrating metal materials with metal oxides to construct a multi-component electrocatalyst represents an effective strategy to develop high-performance electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). In this work, we design and synthesize a synergistic heterogeneous electrocatalyst comprising of CoMoW ternary metal alloys and ceria (CeO₂) nanosheet supported on nickel foam (NF) via a facile and fast electrodeposition method. The strong electronic interaction between CoMoW and CeO₂ not only improves charge transfer but also promotes water dissociation and optimizes hydrogen adsorption capability, thereby improving the kinetics of HER. Benefiting from this properly designed interface, the optimized CoMoW–CeO₂/NF delivered a low overpotential of only 35.25 mV at 10 mA cm⁻² for HER, which is superior to many reported similar catalysts. This work offers an effective approach for the design and construction of high-performance heterogeneous electrocatalyst comprising of ternary alloys and metal oxides.