Tungsten Carbide/Tungsten Oxide Catalysts for Efficient Electrocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

Catalyzing hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is a key process in high-efficiency proton exchange membrane water electrolysis (PEMWE) devices. To replace the use of Pt-based HER catalyst, tungsten carbide (W2C) is one of the most promising non-noble-metal-based catalysts with low cost, replicable catalytic performance, and durability. However, the preparation access to scalable production of W2C catalysts is inevitable. Herein, we introduced a facile protocol to achieve the tungsten carbide species by plasma treatment under a CH4 atmosphere from the WO3 precursor. Moreover, the heterogeneous structure of the tungsten carbide/tungsten oxide nanosheets further enhances the catalytic activity for HER with the enlarged specific surface area and the synergism on the interfaces. The prepared tungsten carbide/tungsten oxide heterostructure nanosheets (WO3-x-850-P) exhibit exceptional HER catalytic activity and stable longevity in acid electrolytes. This work provides a facile and effective method to construct high-performance and non-precious-metal-based electrocatalysts for industrial-scale water electrolysis.