Carbon cloth-supported high-entropy transition metal selenides as high-performance oxygen evolution reaction catalysts

Abstract

High-entropy selenides are anticipated to be high-performance oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalysts owing to their unique structures and tunable polymetallic elements. Traditional synthesis methods for high-entropy selenides require prolonged high-temperature treatment but the catalytic activity of the products is low. Herein, we prepared carbon fiber-supported high-entropy selenized Co-Zn-Cd-Cu-Mn nanosheets (CoZnCdMnCuSe@CC) using a cation exchange method. The synergistic effects of the multi-metal composition and the strong interfacial bonding between the catalyst and the carbon cloth substrate result in excellent catalytic activity and stability. The CoZnCdMnCuSe@CC catalyst achieves an overpotential of 261 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm⁻², a tafel slope as low as 59 mV dec⁻¹ Meanwhile, CoZnCdMnCuSe@CC shows good long-term stability. After 200 h of timed current measurements at 10 mA cm⁻², CoZnCdMnCuSe@CC shows almost no decrease in current density. This work offers a novel approach to the preparation of high-entropy selenides.