Dual Active Site Engineering of Nickel Selenides by a Substrate Effect for Alkaline Hydrogen Evolution.
Dual active sites in NiSe2 catalysts, engineered by a NiS2-NiS substrate, deliver record-breaking alkaline hydrogen evolution. This breakthrough overcomes the challenge of simultaneously activating anionic and cationic sites, paving the way for next-gen clean energy solutions.
This research paper presents a novel strategy for engineering dual active sites in NiSe2 catalysts for the alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). By leveraging a heterogeneous NiS2-NiS substrate, the researchers were able to induce charge distribution and activate Ni 3d electrons, leading to a NiSe2/NiS2-NiS electrode with exceptional catalytic performance. In-situ Raman spectroscopy analysis revealed that the Ni and Se atoms serve as the dual active sites, with the optimal water adsorption-dissociation energy barrier and hydrogen adsorption Gibbs free energy, respectively. This groundbreaking approach provides valuable insights into the design of highly efficient catalysts for clean energy applications, while the study's limitations include the need for further optimization and real-world testing.