Energy-Saving Hydrogen Production from Methanol Electrocatalysis Catalyzed by Molybdenum Phosphide/Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Polyhedrons Supported Pt Nanoparticles

Improving the catalytic efficiency and anti-poisoning ability of Pt-based catalysts is very critical in methanol electrolysis technology for high-purity hydrogen generation. Herein, the nitrogen-doped carbon polyhedrons-encapsulated MoP (MoP@NC) supported Pt nanoparticles were demonstrated to be effective for methanol electrolysis resulting from the combined advantages. The nitrogen-doped carbon polyhedrons not only greatly enhanced the conductivity but also effectively prevented the aggregation of MoP to offer Pt anchoring sites. The electronic structure modification of Pt from their interaction reduced the adsorption energy of CO*, resulting in good CO-poisoning resistance and accelerated reaction kinetics. Specifically, Pt-MoP@NC exhibited the highest peak current density of 106.4 mA·cm^–2 for methanol oxidation and a lower overpotential of 28 mV at 10 mA·cm^–2 for hydrogen evolution. Energy-saving hydrogen production from methanol electrolysis was demonstrated in the two-electrode systems assembled by Pt-MoP@NC which required a low cell voltage of 0.65 V to reach a kinetic current density of 10 mA·cm^–2 on the glass carbon system, about 1.02 V less than that of water electrolysis.