PdRh bimetallene for energy-saving hydrogen production via methanol electroreforming

• A defect-rich and wrinkled PdRh bimetallene was prepared via a one-step method. • Defect-rich and curved metallene structure can provide ultrahigh specific surface area, exposed active sites, high conductivity and atomic utilization. • The optimized electronic structure for bimetallic PdRh can promote the adsorption and dissociation of substances. • The PdRh bimetallene exhibits superior electrocatalytic activity for alkaline MOR and HER. • The PdRh bimetallene methanol electrolyzer needs only a low voltage of 0.657 V to reach energy-saving H 2 production. Optimization of the component and structure is a powerful strategy to enhance electrocatalytic performance of metallene. Herein, a facile and effective thermal-solvent approach is proposed for the synthesis of defect-rich and wrinkled PdRh bimetallene. The PdRh bimetallene exhibits superior electroactivity and durability in alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and methanol oxidation reaction (MOR). Benefiting from defect-rich and curved metallene structure, the PdRh bimetallene possesses ultrahigh specific surface area, exposed active sites, high conductivity and atomic utilization. Moreover, the bimetallic component effectively adjusts the electronic structure, optimizing the adsorption and dissociation of substances during electrocatalysis. The HER-MOR two-electrolysis system for PdRh bimetallene exhibits high energy conversion efficiency, requiring an only 0.657 V to reach a current density of 10 mA cm −2 for energy-efficient hydrogen (H 2 ) production, which significantly decreases energy consumption compared with conventional water electrolysis. The proposed approach provides a promising strategy to design bimetallic metallene for energy electrocatalytic applications.