Construction of Sulfur Doped Nickel and Copper Interfaces for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Developing efficient and economical electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is important for high-purity hydrogen generation. Transition metals-based compounds have been considered as promising substitutes for the Pt-based electrocatalysts toward HER. Nevertheless, pure metals display inert HER activity because of their unfavorable adsorption behavior for intermediates. Herein, thiourea engaged electrodeposition was conducted to fabricate sulfur-doped nickel and copper (S–Ni/Cu) nanowires that contain numerous interfaces. Interface and sulfur doping redistributed the electronic states of the electrocatalyst structure, which accelerated the adsorption of hydrogen atoms at active sites and promoted the water dissociation process. Consequently, the HER overpotential of S–Ni/Cu is only 67 mV at 10 mA cm–2, with excellent durability.