(434f) Transition Metal Carbide-Graphene Nanocomposites for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Seok Ki Kim, Yang Qiu, Yin-Jia Zhang, Ronald Michalsky, Robert H. Hurt, Andrew A. Peterson

Hydrogen has received considerable attention as a renewable energy carrier replacing fuels derived from petroleum resources. The direct electrochemical water splitting using a wind or solar energy is one of the most promising technologies for the hydrogen production due to its straightforward and sustainable characteristics. Up to the present, platinum has been used as the most efficient electrocatalyst. But its high cost and rarity have retarded a large-scale application, thus the development of efficient electrocatalyst with earth-abundant material is the key technological challenge. Among various candidate materials suggested for replacing platinum, transition metal carbides(TMC) were recognized as a potential alternatives because of their similar electronic structures to those of Pt-group metals, resulting in Pt-like behaviors in hydrogen-involved catalytic reactions. The focus of this talk will be on the development of TMC/graphene nanocomposites for the hydrogen evolution reaction in acidic electrolyte. We selected four TMC materials including Mo₂C, TiC, Fe₃C, and WC, based on density functional theory calculations and synthesized graphene-supported TMC nanoparticles. Supercritical-solvothermal method allowed the uniform and incorporative deposition of Mo₂C, TiC, Fe₃C and WC nanoparticles on the graphene surface. High electrochemically active surface area, low overpotential and enhanced catalytic stability were achieved by synergetic effect between TMC nanoparticles and graphene.