Functionalized 3D Mo<sub>2</sub>N Current Collectors Drive Multi‐Phase Ni‐based Synergy and Mitigate Surface Reconstruction for Enhanced Oxygen Evolution Catalysis
Meilian Tu, Zhixiao Zhu, Hao Yang, Muhammad‐Sadeeq Balogun, Yongchao Huang, Yexiang Tong
Abstract
Abstract Electrochemical water splitting is a promising approach for sustainable hydrogen production, but the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) remains a bottleneck due to sluggish kinetics, poor activity, and limited stability and scalability. Here, a Mo 2 N‐functionalized nickel is designed foam (NF@Mo 2 N) and subsequently transform into a Mo 2 N/NiSe/Ni 2 P multi‐phase heterostructure through selenization and phosphorization, to address these challenges. The optimized NF@Mo 2 N/NiSe/Ni 2 P catalyst integrates three key strategies: (I) functionalizing NF with Mo 2 N to enhance conductivity and charge transfer, (II) engineering a collaborative multi‐interface heterostructure to optimize active sites and reaction kinetics, and (III) precisely controlling phase formation through selenization and phosphorization to mitigate surface reconstruction and ensure long‐term stability. The catalyst not only achieves an overpotential of 242 mV@10 mA cm −2 and remarkable stability over 350 h, but also achieves a low overpotential of 395 mV at a high current density of 800 mA cm −2 , outperforming the pristine other control samples. Theoretical analysis reveals that the Mo 2 N‐stabilized NiSe/Ni 2 P heterostructure on NF enhances conductivity and optimizes adsorption energies of OER intermediates, leading to improved catalytic performance and stability. This work provides a new strategy for designing high‐performance, non‐precious metal OER catalysts for industrial applications and advancing sustainable hydrogen production.