Interfacial electronic interaction enabling exposed Pt(110) facets with high specific activity in hydrogen evolution reaction

To achieve a complete industrial chain of hydrogen energy, the development of efficient electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is of great concerns. Herein, a nickel nitride supported platinum (Pt) catalyst with highly exposed Pt(110) facets (Pt(110)-Ni3N) is obtained for catalyzing HER. Combined X-ray spectra and density functional theory studies demonstrate that the interfacial electronic interaction between Pt and Ni3N support can promote the hydrogen evolution on Pt(110) facets by weakening hydrogen adsorption. As a result, the Pt(110)-Ni3N catalyst delivers an obviously higher specific activity than commercial 20 wt.% Pt/C in acidic media. This work suggests that the suitable interface modulation may play a vital role in rationally designing advanced electrocatalysts.