Electrochemically formed PtFeNi alloy nanoparticles on defective NiFe LDHs with charge transfer for efficient water splitting

Efficient and stable bifunctional electrocatalysts for water splitting is essential for producing hydrogen and alleviating huge energy consumption. Meanwhile, charge transfer engineering is an efficient approach to modulate the localized electronic properties of catalysts and tune the electrocatalytic performance. Herein, we tactfully fabricate PtFeNi alloys/NiFe layered double hydroxides (LDHs) heterostructure by an easily electrochemical way with a small amount of Pt. The experimental and theoretical results unravel that the charge transfer on the alloy clusters modulated by the defective substrates (NiFe LDHs), which synergistically optimizes the adsorption energy of the reaction intermediates. The electrocatalyst exhibits an ultra-low overpotential of 81 and 243 mV at the current density of 100 mA cm−2 for hydrogen evolution and oxygen evolution, respectively. Furthermore, the overall water splitting indicates that PtFeNi alloys/NiFe LDHs presents an ultra-low overpotential of 265 and 406 mV to reach the current density of 10 and 300 mA cm−2, respectively. It proves that the PtFeNi alloys/NiFe LDHs catalyst is an excellent dual-function electrocatalyst for water splitting and promising for industrialization. This work provides a new electrochemical approach to construct the alloy heterostructure. The prepared heterostructures act as an ideal platform to investigate the charge re-distribution behavior and to improve the electrocatalytic activity.