Preparing iron oxide clusters surface modified Co3O4 nanoboxes by chemical vapor deposition as an efficient electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution reaction

Interface engineering is an effective way for optimizing the electronic configuration of Co3O4 to enhance the intrinsic activity of oxygen evolution reaction (OER). However, how to enrich accessible activity sites at the interface is still a challenge. Herein, Co3O4 hollow nanoboxes modified by iron oxide nanoclusters (FeOx NCs) (Fe-Co3O4 NBs) as OER electrocatalysts are prepared by a chemical vapor deposition process. Benefiting from high exposed surface area and utilization of atoms, FeOx NCs incorporation can not only regulates the spin state of Co sites, but also exposes more accessible sites for OER. Therefore, Fe-Co3O4 NBs shows excellent OER performance, manifested by the lower overpotential (η) of 265 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and smaller Tafel slope of 54.2 mV dec−1 compared to Co3O4 NBs, and many reported Co based OER electrocatalyst. Further density functional theory analysis reveals that FeOx NCs can downshift the d center of Co sites, which decreases the energy barrier of potential-determining step (PDS) for OER (*OH → *O + H+ + e−) to enhance the electroactivity. This work provides guidance for further designing high-performance OER electrocatalysts.