Constructing Ru particles decorated Co3B-CoP heterostructures as a highly active and reusable catalyst for H2 generation by catalyzing NaBH4 hydrolysis

Constructing an efficient and reusable catalyst for catalyzing NaBH4 hydrolysis for H2 production is of vital significance. Herein, the Ru particles decorated Co3B-CoP heterostructures are obtained by chemical reduction and gas-phase phosphating treatment. The strong electronic interaction and abundant heterojunctions between the Co3B-CoP substrate and Ru particles have been elucidated. The optimal Ru0.063/Co3B-CoP catalyst exhibits a fast hydrogen generation rate (8875.8 mL min−1 gcat−1) and a high turnover frequency (636.0 min−1) at 25 °C, superior to most ever reported catalysts. The excellent NaBH4 hydrolysis performance can be attributed to the lower activation energy (47.6 kJ mol−1) and the synergy between Co3B-CoP substrate and Ru particles. Density functional theory calculations show that electrons penetrate into Ru particles from Co3B-CoP substrate, in which the electron-rich Ru particles can selectively adsorb BH4− ions, while the electron-deficient Co3B-CoP facilitates the capture of H2O molecules, thereby synergistically promote the catalyzing NaBH4 hydrolysis to produce H2.