A Highly Active Porous MoC-MoN Heterostructure on Carbon Nanowalls/Diamond for a High-Current Hydrogen Evolution Reaction.

Developing non-precious metal-based electrocatalysts operating in high-current densities is highly demanded for the industry-level electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Here, we report the facile preparation of binder-free MoC-MoN heterostructures on carbon nanowalls/diamond (CNWs/D) via ultrasonic soaking followed by an annealing treatment. The experimental investigations and density functional theory calculations reveal the downshift of the d-band center caused by the heterojunction between MoC/MoN triggering highly active interfacial sites with a nearly zero ∆ value. Furthermore, the 3D-networked CNWs/D, as the current collector, features high electrical conductivity and large surface area, greatly boosting the electron transfer rate of HER occurring on the interfacial sites of MoC-MoN. Consequently, the self-supporting MoC-MoN@CNWs/D exhibits significantly low overpotentials of 137.8 and 194.4 mV at high current densities of 500 and 1000 mA/cm, respectively, in an alkaline solution, which far surpass the benchmark Pt/C (228.5 and 359.3 mV) and are superior to most transition-metal-based materials. This work presents a cost-effective and high-efficiency non-precious metal-based electrocatalyst candidate for the electrochemical hydrogen production industry.