Hydrogen evolution by tungsten carbonitride nanoelectrocatalysts synthesized by the formation of a tungsten acid/polymer hybrid in situ.

A step forward for tungsten: Nitrogen-rich tungsten carbonitride (WCN) nanomaterials can act as stable and efficient hydrogen evolution electrocatalysts with a much higher activity than conventional WCN materials. The use of a polymerization process provides a unique synthetic route to H2 WO4 nanoparticles, which can then be used to synthesize the WCN-derived catalysts.