Direct photo-curing 3D printing of nickel-based electrocatalysts for highly-efficient hydrogen evolution

It is of great significance to develop cost-effective electrocatalysts for efficient and durable hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in alkaline media to meet the increasing demand of hydrogen. Here, we report a photo-curing 3D printing method for manufacturing directly the structured nickel-based electrocatalysts with unique gluten-like cubic structure and strong catalyst-substrate interaction. With incorporation of amorphous titanium, the tailored Ti-Ni NS electrode exhibits excellent durability, a Tafel slop of 74 mV dec −1 of the HER, and a remarkable low overpotential of 34 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm−2, surpassing the commercial Pt/C catalyst and most of the state-of-the-art electrocatalysts. Density functional theory calculations further confirm that the Ti doping decreases significantly the energy barriers in the Volmer and Heyrovsky steps, thus favoring the HER. This work opens a new window of precisely preparing the structured noble-metal-free catalysts with enhanced activity in alkaline water electrolysis (AWE).