Modification of CoMoO4 by an Fe doping strategy for efficient electrolysis of water

Abstract

Hydrogen is an ideal alternative energy sources as it is non-polluting and clean. The main commercial materials used for hydrogen production from electrolytic water are precious metals. Their high price has a negative impact on the industrialisation of electrolytic water, and there is an urgent need to research highly active and durable non-precious metal materials to replace them. Inorganic transition metals are of interest due to their high content and low price. Here, we prepared high performance and stable Fe-CoMoO₄ by modifying the geometrical and electronic structures of cobalt molybdate. The overpotential of hydrogen precipitation is only 42 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm⁻² in 1 M KOH solution. Meanwhile, it can be stabilised for 32 h at a current density of 100 mA cm⁻². This work provides a new approach to the study of non-precious metal-based catalysts.