Phosphorene-Based Electrocatalysts.

Phosphorene, generally defined as two-dimensional (2D) black phosphorus (BP) with monolayered or few-layered structure, has emerged as a promising member of the family of 2D materials. Since its discovery in 2014, extensive research has been focused on broadening its applications, covering the biological, photoelectric, and electrochemical fields, owing to the unique physicochemical and structural properties. As a single-elemental material, phosphorene has demonstrated its applicability for the preparation of efficient electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), oxygen evolution reaction (OER), nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR), and other electrocatalytic applications. In this Minireview, a summary of the very recent research progresses of phosphorene in electrocatalysis is offered, with a special focus on the effective synthetic strategies towards performance improvement. In the concluding section, challenges and perspectives are also discussed.