Citation: Yan LI, Gongxuan LÜ. Au and Pt-loaded nickel-iron layered hydroxide dual-site catalyst for efficient hydrogen production from water electrolysis[J]. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, ;2026, 42(7): 1463-1474. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20260032 shu

Au and Pt-loaded nickel-iron layered hydroxide dual-site catalyst for efficient hydrogen production from water electrolysis

Yan LI ^{1, 2} ,
Gongxuan LÜ ^1,,

1.
State Key Laboratory of Low Carbon Catalysis and Carbon Dioxide Utilization, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, China
2.
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China

Corresponding author: Gongxuan LÜ, gxlu@lzb.ac.cn
Revised Date: 31 January 2026

Figures(9)

The Au and Pt nanoparticles-loaded nickel-iron layered double hydroxide (NiFe-LDH) catalyst (AuPt-NiFe-LDH-NF, NF was the nickel foam) was prepared by electrodeposition and immersion electroreduction methods. Electrochemical measurement results demonstrated that the catalyst exhibited excellent catalytic activities towards the alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), requiring only 17 mV overpotential to achieve a current density of 10 mA·cm^-2, which was superior to that of commercial Pt/C electrodes. In-situ electrochemical impedance spectra (EIS) results revealed that the Pt introduction onto the NiFe-LDH-NF support improved the charge transfer capability, accelerated the Volmer step by avoiding the adsorption competition between H and OH over the Pt and Ni dual adsorption sites. In addition, more electronegative metal Au stabilized the adsorbed water intermediates via formed hydrogen bonding network with the interfacial water over Pt and Au sites, and accelerated the OH^- transfer to the interface through the Grotthuss mechanism during water splitting. A solar-to-hydrogen efficiency of 17.2% was realized by connecting GaInP₂/GaInAs/Ge solar cells with AuPt-NiFe-LDH-NF electrode.
- alkaline water electrolysis for hydrogen production,
- nickel-iron layered double hydroxides,
- Au and Pt loading
1. [1]
  HU K L, OHTO T, NAGATA Y, WAKISAKA M, AOKI Y, FUJITA J I, ITO Y. Catalytic activity of graphene-covered non-noble metals governed by proton penetration in electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction[J]. Nat. Commun., 2021, 12(1): 203 doi: 10.1038/s41467-020-20503-7
2. [2]
  LUO S L, LIU W Z, LIAO R, GUAN J H, GUO X, WANG Z B, CHEN Y H, TIAN Z Y, LIU H X, NIU X P, LIU S T. Life cycle environmental and economic assessments of industry-level hydrogen production technologies[J]. Int. J. Hydrog. Energy, 2026, 203: 153246 doi: 10.1016/j.ijhydene.2025.153246
3. [3]
  YANG S H, GAO N N, GONG Y Q. Metal-organic framework-templated construction of FeOOH@CoMoO₄/nickel foam heterostructure for enhanced oxygen evolution reaction[J]. Chinese J. Inorg Chem., 2025, 41(10): 2175-2185 doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20250218
4. [4]
  MIAO R X, NIU J M, YAN J, JIA X Y. Impact of metal doping on the photocatalytic water splitting performance of β-Ga₂O₃ for hydrogen production[J]. J. Mol. Catal. (China), 2025, 39(1): 76-84
5. [5]
  LI G, YUAN J X, ZHOU J S, LI X, PENG Z H, WANG J, LEUNG M K H. Tailoring electron-rich Ru/Mo-RuO₂ heterointerface triggers ultrastable proton-inert oxygen evolution reaction[J]. Chem. Eng. J., 2025, 526: 171062 doi: 10.1016/j.cej.2025.171062
6. [6]
  ZHANG Z Y, ZHANG X, SHI C C. Covalent organic frameworks supported noble-metal Pt for electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution[J]. J. Mol. Catal. (China), 2024, 38(1): 42-50
7. [7]
  WU T, XU S M, ZHANG Z, LUO M J, WANG R Q, TANG Y F, WANG J C, HUANG F Q. Bimetal modulation stabilizing a metallic heterostructure for efficient overall water splitting at large current density[J]. Adv. Sci., 2022, 9(25): 2202750 doi: 10.1002/advs.202202750
8. [8]
  LU Z J, TIAN J, ZHAO Q L, XIE J, HU J D, JIA W, CAO Y L. Pt₃Co nanoparticles anchored on Co@NCNT via one-step high-temperature pyrolysis boosting methanol oxidation and high-efficiency pH-universal hydrogen evolution[J]. Fuel, 2025, 400: 135798 doi: 10.1016/j.fuel.2025.135798
9. [9]
  WANG T Y, XIE H, CHEN M J, D′ALOIA A, CHO J, WU G, LI Q. Precious metal-free approach to hydrogen electrocatalysis for energy conversion: From mechanism understanding to catalyst design[J]. Nano Energy, 2017, 42: 69-89 doi: 10.1016/j.nanoen.2017.10.045
10. [10]
  JIN H, RUQIA B, PARK Y, KIM H J, OH H S, CHOI S I, LEE K. Nanocatalyst design for long-term operation of proton/anion exchange membrane water electrolysis[J]. Adv. Energy Mater., 2021, 11(4): 2003188 doi: 10.1002/aenm.202003188
11. [11]
  ZHANG J X, ZHANG L H, LIU J M, ZHONG C Z, TU Y H, LI P, DU L, CHEN S L, CUI Z M. OH spectator at IrMo intermetallic narrowing activity gap between alkaline and acidic hydrogen evolution reaction[J]. Nat. Commun., 2022, 13(1): 5497 doi: 10.1038/s41467-022-33216-w
12. [12]
13. [13]
  LI Y, SONG W N, GAI T, WANG L P, LI Z, HE P, LIU Q, LEE L Y S. Self-activated oxophilic surface of porous molybdenum carbide nanosheets promotes hydrogen evolution activity in alkaline environment[J]. J. Colloid Interface Sci., 2025, 691: 137423 doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2025.137423
14. [14]
15. [15]
  JIA H L, LU Y J, JI P C. Preparation and properties of nitrogen and phosphorus co-doped graphene carbon aerogel supported ruthenium electrocatalyst for hydrogen evolution reaction[J]. Chinese J. Inorg Chem., 2025, 41(11): 2327-2336 doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20250021
16. [16]
17. [17]
  SAM D K, TANG Z, CAO Y. Ru-Mo₂C nanoclusters anchored on N, P crownshaft-derived porous carbon for efficient hydrogen evolution in alkaline seawater[J]. J. Colloid Interface Sci., 2025, 699: 138213 doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2025.138213
18. [18]
  HU C L, ZHANG L, GONG J L. Recent progress made in the mechanism comprehension and design of electrocatalysts for alkaline water splitting[J]. Energy Environ. Sci., 2019, 12(9): 2620-2645 doi: 10.1039/C9EE01202H
19. [19]
  LI M F, WANG H Z, YANG Z J, YIN Z X, LIU Y, BIAN Y M, WANG Y, ZHENG X R, DENG Y D. Synergistic enhancement of alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction by role of Ni-Fe LDH introducing frustrated Lewis pairs via vacancy-engineered[J]. Chin. Chem. Lett., 2025, 36(3): 110199 doi: 10.1016/j.cclet.2024.110199
20. [20]
  WANG X S, ZHENG Y, SHENG W C, XU Z C J, JARONIEC M, QIAO S Z. Strategies for design of electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution under alkaline conditions[J]. Mater. Today, 2020, 36: 125-138 doi: 10.1016/j.mattod.2019.12.003
21. [21]
22. [22]
  SHENG W C, MYINT M, CHEN J G G, YAN Y S. Correlating the hydrogen evolution reaction activity in alkaline electrolytes with the hydrogen binding energy on monometallic surfaces[J]. Energy Environ. Sci., 2013, 6(5): 1509-1512 doi: 10.1039/c3ee00045a
23. [23]
  JEONG S M, MAI H D, NAM K H, PARK C M, JEON K J. Self-healing graphene-templated platinum-nickel oxide heterostructures for overall water splitting[J]. ACS Nano, 2022, 16(1): 930-938 doi: 10.1021/acsnano.1c08506
24. [24]
  KEPP K P. A quantitative scale of oxophilicity and thiophilicity[J]. Inorg. Chem., 2016, 55(18): 9461-9470 doi: 10.1021/acs.inorgchem.6b01702
25. [25]
  XU Q C, ZHANG J H, ZHANG H X, ZHANG L Y, CHEN L, HU Y J, JIANG H, LI C Z. Atomic heterointerface engineering overcomes the activity limitation of electrocatalysts and promises highly‑ efficient alkaline water splitting[J]. Energy Environ. Sci., 2021, 14(10): 5228-5259 doi: 10.1039/D1EE02105B
26. [26]
27. [27]
  SUBBARAMAN R, TRIPKOVIC D, CHANG K C, STRMCNIK D, PAULIKAS A P, HIRUNSIT P, CHAN M, GREELEY J, STAMENKOVIC V, MARKOVIC N M. Trends in activity for the water electrolyser reactions on 3d M(Ni, Co, Fe, Mn) hydr(oxy)oxide catalysts[J]. Nat. Mater., 2012, 11(6): 550-557 doi: 10.1038/nmat3313
28. [28]
  LIU E S, LI J K, JIAO L, DOAN H T T, LIU Z Y, ZHAO Z P, HUANG Y, ABRAHAM K M, MUKERJEE S, JIA Q Y. Unifying the hydrogen evolution and oxidation reactions kinetics in base by identifying the catalytic roles of hydroxyl-water-cation adducts[J]. J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2019, 141(7): 3232-3239 doi: 10.1021/jacs.8b13228
29. [29]
  SUN Q, OLIVEIRA N J, KWON S, TYUKHTENKO S, GUO J J, MYRTHIL N, LOPEZ S A, KENDRICK I, MUKERJEE S, MA L, EHRLICH S N, LI J K, GODDARD W A, YAN Y S, JIA Q Y. Understanding hydrogen electrocatalysis by probing the hydrogen-bond network of water at the electrified Pt-solution interface[J]. Nat. Energy, 2023, 8(8): 859-869 doi: 10.1038/s41560-023-01302-y
30. [30]
  CHEN W, WU B B, WANG Y Y, ZHOU W, LI Y Y, LIU T Y, XIE C, XU L T, DU S Q, SONG M L, WANG D D, LIU Y B, LI Y F, LIU J L, ZOU Y Q, CHEN R, CHEN C, ZHENG J Y, LI Y F, CHEN J, WANG S Y. Deciphering the alternating synergy between interlayer Pt single-atom and NiFe layered double hydroxide for overall water splitting[J]. Energy Environ. Sci., 2021, 14(12): 6428-6440 doi: 10.1039/D1EE01395E
31. [31]
  WENG X X, LIU Y, WANG K K, FENG J J, YUAN J H, WANG A J, XU Q Q. Single-step aqueous synthesis of AuPt alloy nanodendrites with superior electrocatalytic activity for oxygen reduction and hydrogen evolution reaction[J]. Int. J. Hydrog. Energy, 2016, 41(40): 18193-18202 doi: 10.1016/j.ijhydene.2016.07.160
32. [32]
  ZHOU D J, CAI Z, BI Y M, TIAN W L, LUO M, ZHANG Q, ZHANG Q, XIE Q X, WANG J D, LI Y P, KUANG Y, DUAN X, BAJDICH M, SIAHROSTAMI S, SUN X M. Effects of redox-active interlayer anions on the oxygen evolution reactivity of NiFe-layered double hydroxide nanosheets[J]. Nano Res., 2018, 11(3): 1358-1368 doi: 10.1007/s12274-017-1750-9
33. [33]
  BAI Y K, WU Y, ZHOU X C, YE Y F, NIE K Q, WANG J O, XIE M, ZHANG Z X, LIU Z J, CHENG T, GAO C B. Promoting nickel oxidation state transitions in single‑layer NiFeB hydroxide nanosheets for efficient oxygen evolution[J]. Nat. Commun., 2022, 13(1): 6094 doi: 10.1038/s41467-022-33846-0
34. [34]
  ZHANG T Y, JIN J, CHEN J M, FANG Y Y, HAN X, CHEN J Y, LI Y P, WANG Y, LIU J F, WANG L. Pinpointing the axial ligand effect on platinum single-atom-catalyst towards efficient alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction[J]. Nat. Commun., 2022, 13(1): 6875 doi: 10.1038/s41467-022-34619-5
35. [35]
  XIE J F, QU H C, LEI F C, PENG X, LIU W W, GAO L, HAO P, CUI G W, TANG B. Partially amorphous nickel-iron layered double hydroxide nanosheet arrays for robust bifunctional electrocatalysis[J]. J. Mater. Chem. A, 2018, 6(33): 16121-16129 doi: 10.1039/C8TA05054F
36. [36]
  ZHANG J, SASAKI K, SUTTER E, ADZIC R R. Stabilization of platinum oxygen-reduction electrocatalysts using gold clusters[J]. Science, 2007, 315(5809): 220-222 doi: 10.1126/science.1134569
37. [37]
38. [38]
  XIE C, CHEN W, DU S Q, YAN D F, ZHANG Y Q, CHEN J, LIU B, WANG S Y. In-situ phase transition of WO₃ boosting electron and hydrogen transfer for enhancing hydrogen evolution on Pt[J]. Nano Energy, 2020, 71: 104653 doi: 10.1016/j.nanoen.2020.104653
39. [39]
  KIM J, JUNG H, JUNG S M, HWANG J, KIM D Y, LEE N, KIM K S, KWON H, KIM Y T, HAN J W, KIM J K. Tailoring binding abilities by incorporating oxophilic transition metals on 3D nanostructured Ni arrays for accelerated alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction[J]. J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2021, 143(3): 1399-1408 doi: 10.1021/jacs.0c10661
40. [40]
  VAN BRUSSEL M, KOKKINIDIS G, VANDENDAEL I, BUESS-HERMAN C. High performance gold-supported platinum electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction[J]. Electrochem. Commun., 2002, 4(10): 808-813 doi: 10.1016/S1388-2481(02)00437-X
41. [41]
  KARLBERG G S. Adsorption trends for water, hydroxyl, oxygen, and hydrogen on transition-metal and platinum-skin surfaces[J]. Phys. Rev. B, 2006, 74(15): 153414 doi: 10.1103/PhysRevB.74.153414
42. [42]
  CHANG F F, SHAN S Y, PETKOV V, SKEETE Z, LU A L, RAVID J, WU J F, LUO J, YU G, REN Y, ZHONG C J. Composition tunability and (111)-dominant facets of ultrathin platinum-gold alloy nanowires toward enhanced electrocatalysis[J]. J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2016, 138(37): 12166-12175 doi: 10.1021/jacs.6b05187
43. [43]
44. [44]
  LI Y K, CHEN Y X, LIU Z F. OH-center dot center dot center dot Au hydrogen bond and its effect on the oxygen reduction reaction on Au(100) in alkaline media[J]. J. Phys. Chem. Lett., 2022: 9035-9043
1. [1]
  Qingqing SHEN , Xiangbowen DU , Kaicheng QIAN , Zhikang JIN , Zheng FANG , Tong WEI , Renhong LI . Self-supporting Cu/α-FeOOH/foam nickel composite catalyst for efficient hydrogen production by coupling methanol oxidation and water electrolysis. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2024, 40(10): 1953-1964. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20240028
2. [2]
  Wang Wang , Yucheng Liu , Shengli Chen . Use of NiFe Layered Double Hydroxide as Electrocatalyst in Oxygen Evolution Reaction: Catalytic Mechanisms, Electrode Design, and Durability. Acta Physico-Chimica Sinica, 2024, 40(2): 2303059-0. doi: 10.3866/PKU.WHXB202303059
3. [3]
  Endong YANG , Haoze TIAN , Ke ZHANG , Yongbing LOU . Efficient oxygen evolution reaction of CuCo₂O₄/NiFe-layered bimetallic hydroxide core-shell nanoflower sphere arrays. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2024, 40(5): 930-940. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20230369
4. [4]
  Yan LIU , Jiaxin GUO , Song YANG , Shixian XU , Yanyan YANG , Zhongliang YU , Xiaogang HAO . Exclusionary recovery of phosphate anions with low concentration from wastewater using a CoNi-layered double hydroxide/graphene electronically controlled separation film. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2024, 40(9): 1775-1783. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20240043
5. [5]
  Kai CHEN , Fengshun WU , Shun XIAO , Jinbao ZHANG , Lihua ZHU . PtRu/nitrogen-doped carbon for electrocatalytic methanol oxidation and hydrogen evolution by water electrolysis. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2024, 40(7): 1357-1367. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20230350
6. [6]
  Yaping ZHANG , Tongchen WU , Yun ZHENG , Bizhou LIN . Z-scheme heterojunction β-Bi₂O₃ pillared CoAl layered double hydroxide nanohybrid: Fabrication and photocatalytic degradation property. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2025, 41(3): 531-539. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20240256
7. [7]
  Lina Guo , Ruizhe Li , Chuang Sun , Xiaoli Luo , Yiqiu Shi , Hong Yuan , Shuxin Ouyang , Tierui Zhang . Effect of Interlayer Anions in Layered Double Hydroxides on the Photothermocatalytic CO₂ Methanation of Derived Ni-Al₂O₃ Catalysts. Acta Physico-Chimica Sinica, 2025, 41(1): 100002-0. doi: 10.3866/PKU.WHXB202309002
8. [8]
  Shijie Ren , Mingze Gao , Rui-Ting Gao , Lei Wang . Bimetallic Oxyhydroxide Cocatalyst Derived from CoFe MOF for Stable Solar Water Splitting. Acta Physico-Chimica Sinica, 2024, 40(7): 2307040-0. doi: 10.3866/PKU.WHXB202307040
9. [9]
  Liang WANG , Hongxu WU , Yunsong RAO , Dun HAN , Xuan SONG , Jianlong LIN , Dongfang LI , Sheng ZHANG . Research progress in graphene-based materials for hydrogen production via water electrolysis. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2026, 42(7): 1368-1382. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20260057
10. [10]
  Jinxin Gao , Yuliang Li , Qiuya Zhang , Zhaoyang Wang , Honghao Li , Xiaofang Zhang , Dongliang Tian . Experimental Teaching Design for High-Efficiency Water Electrolysis Hydrogen Production Electrodes with Bubble Diversion Function. University Chemistry, 2026, 41(4): 380-392. doi: 10.12461/PKU.DXHX202502101
11. [11]
  Junqing WEN , Ruoqi WANG , Jianmin ZHANG . Regulation of photocatalytic hydrogen production performance in GaN/ZnO heterojunction through doping with Li and Au. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2025, 41(5): 923-938. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20240243
12. [12]
  Huafeng SHI . Construction of MnCoNi layered double hydroxide@Co-Ni-S amorphous hollow polyhedron composite with excellent electrocatalytic oxygen evolution performance. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2025, 41(7): 1380-1386. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20240378
13. [13]
  Xin Han , Zhihao Cheng , Jinfeng Zhang , Jie Liu , Cheng Zhong , Wenbin Hu . Design of Amorphous High-Entropy FeCoCrMnBS (Oxy) Hydroxides for Boosting Oxygen Evolution Reaction. Acta Physico-Chimica Sinica, 2025, 41(4): 100033-0. doi: 10.3866/PKU.WHXB202404023
14. [14]
  Ping ZHANG , Chenchen ZHAO , Xiaoyun CUI , Bing XIE , Yihan LIU , Haiyu LIN , Jiale ZHANG , Yu'nan CHEN . Preparation and adsorption-photocatalytic performance of ZnAl@layered double oxides. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2024, 40(10): 1965-1974. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20240014
15. [15]
  Yanqiu LI , Fang ZHAO , Yang YANG , Jing YU . PtRu/N-doped carbon nanofiber: Preparation and hydrogen evolution performance for water electrolysis. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2026, 42(5): 1003-1014. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20250238
16. [16]
  Hao GUO , Tong WEI , Qingqing SHEN , Anqi HONG , Zeting DENG , Zheng FANG , Jichao SHI , Renhong LI . Electrocatalytic decoupling of urea solution for hydrogen production by nickel foam-supported Co₉S₈/Ni₃S₂ heterojunction. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2024, 40(11): 2141-2154. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20240085
17. [17]
  Chenyang WANG , Yiyan BAI , Wei ZHANG , Zhaorong LIU , Yuchun WANG . Performance of photo-assisted copper oxide catalyzed hydrolysis of ammonia borane to produce hydrogen. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2026, 42(1): 97-110. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20250116
18. [18]
  Xiaofeng Zhu , Bingbing Xiao , Jiaxin Su , Shuai Wang , Qingran Zhang , Jun Wang . Transition Metal Oxides/Chalcogenides for Electrochemical Oxygen Reduction into Hydrogen Peroxides. Acta Physico-Chimica Sinica, 2024, 40(12): 2407005-0. doi: 10.3866/PKU.WHXB202407005
19. [19]
  Xueyu Lin , Ruiqi Wang , Wujie Dong , Fuqiang Huang . Rational Design of Bimetallic Oxide Anodes for Superior Li⁺ Storage. Acta Physico-Chimica Sinica, 2025, 41(3): 100021-0. doi: 10.3866/PKU.WHXB202311005
20. [20]
  Wuxin Bai , Qianqian Zhou , Zhenjie Lu , Ye Song , Yongsheng Fu . Co-Ni Bimetallic Zeolitic Imidazolate Frameworks Supported on Carbon Cloth as Free-Standing Electrode for Highly Efficient Oxygen Evolution. Acta Physico-Chimica Sinica, 2024, 40(3): 2305041-0. doi: 10.3866/PKU.WHXB202305041

Get Citation

PDF

XML

Metrics

PDF Downloads(0)
Abstract views(4)
HTML views(0)

通讯作者: 陈斌, bchen63@163.com

1.
沈阳化工大学材料科学与工程学院沈阳 110142