Synergistic coupling of heterogeneous VN/WN nanoparticles embedded in N-doped carbon matrix for efficient hydrogen evolution reaction

Engineering efficient and durable electrocatalysts for water electrolysis is of vital importance for achieving the large-scale hydrogen production, but challenges remain. Herein, a novel nanocomposite composed of heterogeneous VN/WN nanoparticles embedded in nitrogen-doped carbon (VN/[email protected]) is successfully synthesized using one-step calcination protocol. Benefiting from the optimized electronic configuration, heterogeneous nanostructure and upgraded conductivity, VN/[email protected] exhibits the unexceptionable electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) performance, requiring a quite low overpotential of 122 mV to deliver the current density of 10 mA cm−2 without iR-compensation, and maintaining continuous operation for over 100 h in 1.0 M KOH. Overall, this study might enlighten the rational design of high-performance nitride-based catalysts for widespread application in electrochemical HER domain