US EPA

4848779 

Journal Article 

Electrochemical performance of alpha-Mo2C as catalyst for the hydrogen evolution reaction 

Garcia, G; Roca-Ayats, M; Guillen-Villafuerte, O; Rodriguez, JL; Arevalo, MC; Pastor, E 

2017 

1 

Journal of Electroanalytical Chemistry
ISSN: 1572-6657
EISSN: 1873-2569 

793 

235-241 

10.1016/j.jelechem.2017.01.038 

WOS:000405043900031 

Hexagonal molybdenum carbide (alpha-Mo2C) was evaluated as platinum-free catalyst for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in sulphuric acid medium. With this end in view, alpha-Mo2C was synthesized following a simple carbothermal route that conceives large amount of the transition metal carbide with nanometric size and pure crystalline phase. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized by XRD, EDX and XPS, and the performance of alpha-Mo2C catalyst during the HER was investigated using a rotating disk electrode (RIDE). In addition, differential electrochemical mass spectrometry (DEMS) was employed for an accurate determination of the onset potential of the reaction (-0.075 V vs RHE) and to study the degradation process of the catalyst. Main results indicate high catalytic activity of the active phase (alpha-Mo2C) toward the HER and suitable stability, although both properties were strongly affected after a strong oxidative degradation test. These three parameters (onset potential, activity and stability) can be improved by decreasing the degree of surface oxide species, which is currently under investigation. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 

Molybdenum carbide; Hydrogen evolution reaction; Electrochemical stability; DEMS