Ternary Co0.4Fe1.6P Catalysts for Efficient Electrolysis of Water

In recent years, transition metal phosphides as electrocatalysts are the research hotspot due to their low cost and high electrical conductivity. However, their applications are largely restricted by their low conversion efficiency and sluggish reaction kinetics. Herein, we report several kinds of flower-like Co0.4Fe1.6P catalysts through a facile hydrothermal approach and subsequent phosphating process. The as-prepared materials possess sufficient catalytic sites to facilitate ion transfer. The Co0.4Fe1.6P-2 electrode presents an overpotential of 244 mV@50 mA cm–2 for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and 96 mV@10 mA cm–2 for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Moreover, the assembled two-electrode system presents a voltage of 1.66 V at the current density of 50 mA cm–2.