Effect of Fe doping on the graphitic level of Mo2C/N-C for electrocatalytic water splitting

摘要

<br/>How to improve the electronic conductivity of a non-noble metal catalyst for electrochemical water splitting is a hot and challenging research topic. Herein, a rational synthetic approach of Fe doping was adopted to adjust the graphitic degree of nitrogen-rich carbon (N-C) supporting Mo2C nanoparticles, and the prepared electrocatalyst performs outstandingly well in water splitting. It was found that highly graphitic N-C sheets and Mo2C nanoparticles could be simultaneously formed during one-step calcination using ferric chloride, dicyandiamide and ammonium molybdate as precursors. The Mo2C nanoparticles with an average particle size of ca. 3.8 nm are uniformly distributed on the graphitic carbon sheets. The control experiments reveal the essential role of Fe in the preparation of the Mo2C/N-C catalyst. Electrochemical tests show that the catalyst is robust for hydrogen evolution in water splitting under acidic conditions.

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