Simplistic two-step fabrication of porous carbon-based biomass-derived electrocatalyst for efficient hydrogen evolution reaction

The development of novel, efficient, durable and cheap electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) by electrochemical water-splitting is pivotal to solving the persisting energy problem related to hydrogen utilization as a renewable energy. Thus, Pt-like materials that are efficient, stable and cheap must be fabricated to overcome the commercial challenges facing electrocatalysts. Herein, biomass derived Mo2C/C electrocatalysts based on watermelon peels were fabricated for HER application through a simplistic two step approach and easy pyrolysis procedure. Benefiting from the excellent HER performances, abundant mass transfer of electrons, large surface areas and unique pore sizes of the fabricated Mo2C/C electrocatalysts, Mo2C/C-800 °C required geometrical overpotential of 133 mV to deliver a current density of 10 mA cm-2 in 1.0 M of KOH solution; and further displayed long-term durability process for 300 h. This study therefore introduced a novel approach to designing excellent electrocatalysts from biomass waste for HER application.