Strong Metal-Support Interaction-Induced Regulation of Hydrogen Adsorption Behavior of Uniform Ru Nanoparticles Integrated with CoP Nanosheets for High-Efficiency Electrochemical Hydrogen Production

The ingenious modification of the hydrogen adsorption state of ruthenium (Ru) for achieving high-efficiency electrocatalytic performance is of vital importance for water electrolysis technology. Herein, a novel heterostructured catalyst composed of highly dispersed ultrafine Ru nanoparticles immobilized on CoP nanosheet (denoted as Ru/CoP hereafter) is developed through a feasible "impregnation-phosphorization" strategy. Experimental results and density functional theory (DFT) simulations collectively indicate that the strong metal-support interaction (SMSI) effect between Ru nanoparticles and CoP nanosheet substrate can dramatically tailor the electronic configurations of active centers, thus accelerating the charge transfer rate and regulating the hydrogen binding energy. Consequently, the Ru/CoP electrocatalyst with optimal Ru loading content demonstrates prominent HER performance in alkaline solution with a low overpotential of 36 mV to afford a current density of 10 mA cm(-2) and a small Tafel slope of 73.0 mV dec(-1), which can almost compete with that of commercial Pt/C. This work provides a new inspiration for the elaborate modification of intermediate adsorption capacity and enhancement of electrocatalytic performance for high-efficiency electrocatalysts in energy conversion fields.