Interface engineering of CeO nanoparticle/BiWO nanosheet nanohybrids with oxygen vacancies for oxygen evolution reactions under alkaline conditions.

Because of the interactive combination synergy effect, hetero interface engineering is used way for advancing electrocatalytic activity and durability. In this study, we demonstrate that a CeO/BiWO heterostructure is synthesized by a hydrothermal method. Electrochemical measurement results indicate that CeO/BiWO displays not only more OER catalytic active sites with an overpotential of 390 mV and a Tafel slope of 117 mV dec but also durability for 10 h (97.57%). Such outstanding characteristics are primarily attributed to (1) the considerable activities by CeO nanoparticles uniformly distributed on BiWO nanosheets and (2) the plentiful Bi-O-Ce and W-O-Ce species playing the role of strong couples between CeO nanoparticles and BiWO nanosheets and oxygen vacancy existence in CeO nanoparticles, which can improve the electrochemical active surface area (ECSA) and activity, and enhance the conductivity for OERs. This CeO/BiWO consists of the heterojunction engineering that can open a modern method of thinking for high effective OER electrocatalysts.