Synergistic integration of MXene and metal-organic frameworks for enhanced electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution in an alkaline environment

Hao, Low Ping and Hanan, Abdul and Walvekar, Rashmi and Khalid, Mohammad and Bibi, Faiza and Wong, Wai Yin and Prakash, Chander (2023) Synergistic integration of MXene and metal-organic frameworks for enhanced electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution in an alkaline environment. Catalysts, 13 (5). 802. ISSN 2073-4344 (https://doi.org/10.3390/catal13050802)

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Abstract

The development of transition metal (TM) catalysts to replace precious metals has garnered increasing interest. Specifically, platinum (Pt)-based catalysts have been extensively investigated for their electrochemical performance in hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), which offer a clean means of producing hydrogen fuel without carbon emissions. However, the reliance on Pt-based catalysts has hindered the progress of HER development. Therefore, researchers have explored metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) as a substitute for noble Pt-based catalysts to address this issue. Nevertheless, the low electroconductivity of pure MOFs restricts their application in electrochemical fields. To overcome this limitation, MXenes have emerged as a promising two-dimensional (2D) material for coupling with MOFs to create an electrocatalyst with high electrical conductivity, a large surface area, and a tunable structure. In this study, we report the synthesis of a Ti3C2Tx (MXene) nanosheet-encapsulated MOFs catalyst (Ti3C2Tx@ZIF-8) with high activity and a low cost by encapsulating the precursor with ZIF-8 for HER in alkaline media. The catalyst exhibits an overpotential of only 507 mV at 20 mA/cm2 and a low Tafel slope value of 77 mV/dec. Additionally, cyclic voltammetry (CV) indicates an electrochemical active surface area (ECSA) of 122.5 cm2, and chronopotentiometry demonstrates the stable nature of the catalyst over 20 h without any significant changes in the overpotential value. The excellent electrochemical properties of Ti3C2Tx@ZIF-8 suggest its potential as a promising material for energy conversion applications.

ORCID iDs

Hao, Low Ping, Hanan, Abdul, Walvekar, Rashmi ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8283-1278, Khalid, Mohammad, Bibi, Faiza, Wong, Wai Yin and Prakash, Chander;