Rational Construction of Pt Incorporated CoO as High-Performance Electrocatalyst for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction.

Electrocatalysts in alkaline electrocatalytic water splitting are required to efficiently produce hydrogen while posing a challenge to show excellent performances. Herein, we have successfully synthesized platinum nanoparticles incorporated in a CoO nanostructure (denoted as Pt-CoO) that show superior HER activity and stability in alkaline solutions (the overpotentials of 37 mV to reach 10 mA cm). The outstanding electrocatalytic activity originates from synergistic effects between Pt and CoO and increased electron conduction. Theoretical calculations show a significant decrease in the ΔG of Co active sites and a remarkable increase in electron transport. Our work puts forward a special and simple synthesized way of adjusting the H* adsorption energy of an inert site for application in HER.