Design and synthesis of autogenous growth NiFe bimetallic phosphide catalysts on a nickel iron foam-like substrate for efficient overall water splitting

Fanjia Sun; Jianbing Zang; Zhiwei Hou; Xueqing Tian; Rui Zhu; Youbin Zheng; Yanhui Wang; Liang Dong

doi:10.1016/j.jcis.2025.01.042

Design and synthesis of autogenous growth NiFe bimetallic phosphide catalysts on a nickel iron foam-like substrate for efficient overall water splitting

J Colloid Interface Sci. 2025 Jan 7;684(Pt 1):355-366. doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2025.01.042. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Fanjia Sun¹, Jianbing Zang¹, Zhiwei Hou¹, Xueqing Tian¹, Rui Zhu¹, Youbin Zheng², Yanhui Wang³, Liang Dong⁴

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Metastable Materials Science and Technology, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, PR China.
² Key Laboratory of Dielectric and Electrolyte Functional Material Hebei Province, School of Resources and Materials, Northeastern University at Qinhuangdao, Qinhuangdao 066004, PR China.
³ State Key Laboratory of Metastable Materials Science and Technology, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, PR China. Electronic address: diamond_wangyanhui@163.com.
⁴ Key Laboratory of Dielectric and Electrolyte Functional Material Hebei Province, School of Resources and Materials, Northeastern University at Qinhuangdao, Qinhuangdao 066004, PR China. Electronic address: dongliang@neuq.edu.cn.

PMID: 39798431
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2025.01.042

Abstract

The design of low-cost, highly active, and stable electrocatalysts is pivotal for advancing water electrolysis technologies. In this study, carbonyl iron powder (CIP) was anchored within the pores of nickel foam (NF) by electroplating nickel, creating nickel iron foam-like (NFF-L) substrates. Subsequently, nickel-iron hydroxide (NiFe-OH) was synthesized on the NFF-L substrate employing an autogenous growth strategy, followed by a phosphating treatment that produced a nanoflower-like NiFe bimetallic phosphide heterostructure catalyst (Fe₂P-Ni₂P@NFF-L). This novel method of substrate filling enhanced space utilization, while the presence of micropores and mesopores on the nanosheet surfaces facilitated electrolyte infiltration and ion diffusion, thereby significantly increasing the specific surface area. The formation of a two-phase heterointerface accelerated electron transmission and transfer, enhancing water dissociation and the adsorption of hydrogen adatoms (H_ad). In addition, under anodic oxidation conditions, the dynamic surface reconstruction facilitated a synergistic interaction between the highly active β-NiOOH and α-FeOOH phases, which significantly contributed to the catalyst's exceptional intrinsic activity for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER).

Keywords: Bifunctional electrocatalysts; Heterogeneous structures; NF pore utilization; Surface reconstruction; Transition metal phosphides.