MOF-Derived Noble Metal-Free Electrocatalysts for Water Splitting

The development of clean energy materials is considered an alternative to fossil fuels for the remediation of hazardous environmental pollutants. Electrocatalysis is a promising method for water splitting to produce hydrogen as a clean fuel. Noble metals are generally used as electrocatalysts in hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), oxygen evolution reaction (OER), and water splitting process. Nevertheless, its application is restricted because of being costly and offering less stability. Recently, noble metal-free metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) based materials are considered a promising electrocatalyst for water electrolysis due to their low cost, large surface area, functionality, tunable electronic properties, remarkable catalytic activities, and stability. This chapter will focus on the application of noble metal-free MOFs and MOF-based electrocatalysts in electrocatalytic water splitting for both hydrogen and oxygen evolution. It starts from the fundamentals of water electrocatalysis including HER and OER. Moreover, the unique features of noble metal-free MOFs-based electrocatalysts over noble metal-based electrocatalysts will be illustrated precisely. Finally, recent progress along with current challenges and future perspectives of noble metal-free MOFs and MOF-based electrocatalysts for water splitting will also be presented.