Ensemble-boosting effect of Ru-Cu alloy on catalytic activity towards hydrogen evolution in ammonia borane hydrolysis

Abstract The development of high-efficient and economical catalysts is a challenging problem for the utilization of sustainable hydrogen energy. Alloying noble metal with non-noble metal is a promising strategy to achieve high catalytic activity and stability of catalysts. Herein, highly dispersed Ru-Cu alloy nanoparticles were successfully fabricated via solid-surfaces-organic-pyrolysis on N-doped carbon coating TiO2 towards hydrogen evolution in NH3BH3 hydrolysis. Ru-Cu alloys with various molar ratios exhibit markedly enhanced catalytic activity than monometallic counterparts. The optimized Ru0.6Cu0.4/TiO2@C-N catalyst achieves an excellent TOF of 626 molH2 molRu−1 min−1 at room temperature. Experimental analysis and DFT calculation reveal the existence of ensemble-boosting effect between Ru and Cu. Multiatomic active sites in alloy significantly promote hydrogen evolution in NH3BH3 hydrolysis. This research provides further understanding of catalytic mechanism and the rational design of high-efficient and economical bimetallic nanocatalysts.