Ultrafast Preparation of Metal/Carbon Nanocomposite Electrocatalysts by Magnetic Induction Heating toward Efficient Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Abstract

Hydrogen, which can be readily produced by electrochemical water splitting, has been hailed as one of the most promising green energy sources. In a water electrolyzer, catalysts are needed for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) at the cathode, which are traditionally based on platinum-based materials. Recently, carbon-based nanocomposites have emerged as viable alternatives, which are mostly prepared by pyrolysis or wet chemistry methods, which are time- and energy-consuming. We have exploited magnetic induction heating (MIH) for ultrafast and green preparation of high-performance HER electrocatalysts. A novel MIH method was developed for the ultrafast and green preparation of carbon-supported Ru NPs toward HER in alkaline media, where the size and morphology of the Ru NPs can be readily manipulated by the heating current and duration. It is expected that MIH can be exploited for the design and engineering of high-performance nanocomposite catalysts for important electrochemical energy technologies.