Novel nanoporous amorphous/nanocrystalline composite structured RuNiFeCo multicomponent alloys with exceptional catalytic activity for ammonia borane hydrolytic dehydrogenation

The pursuit of high-efficient and cost-effective catalysts for hydrogen generation is imperative to address the energy crisis. Herein, nanoporous RuNiFeCo alloys (np-RuNiFeCo) with high catalytic activity for ammonia borane (AB) hydrolytic dehydrogenation have been prepared by dealloying Fe25NixCo40-xRu5B30 (x = 0–40) high-entropy amorphous alloys with low Ru content. The np-RuNiFeCo are composed of an amorphous/hexagonal close-packed Ru nanocrystalline dual-phase structure and exhibit a uniform nanopore/ligament bicontinuous architecture. The morphology, composition, and AB hydrolysis catalytic properties of the np-RuNiFeCo can be regulated by varying the Ni/Co content in the precursors, and the best catalytic activity with a high turnover frequency value of 148.2 and a low apparent activation energy of 25.3 was obtained when x = 30. Density functional theory simulations indicate that the presence of Ni, synergizing with Fe and Co, promotes electron transfer to Ru and enhances the adsorption energies of both AB and H2O molecules while reducing the activation barrier for cleaving the H2O molecule, leading to enhanced intrinsic catalytic activity of the alloy. The exceptional catalytic performance of the np-RuNiFeCo arises from the synergy of multiple principal elements, nanoporous morphology, and amorphous/nanocrystalline heterogeneous interface. In addition, the mechanisms of dealloying and nanoporous structure formation have been discussed based on surface diffusion.