Dealloying of an amorphous TiCuRu alloy results in a nanostructured electrocatalyst for hydrogen evolution reaction

Development of an electrocatalyst that is cheap and has good properties to replace conventional noble metals is important for H-2 applications. In this study, dealloying of an amorphous Ti37Cu60Ru3 alloy was performed to prepare a free-standing nanostructured hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) catalyst. The effect of dealloying and addition of Ru to TiCu alloys on the microstructure and HER properties under alkaline conditions was investigated. 3 at.% Ru addition in Ti40Cu60 decreases the overpotential to reach a current density of 10 mA cm(-2) and Tafel slope of the dealloyed samples to 35 and 34 mV dec(-1). The improvement of electrocatalytic properties was attributed to the formation of a nanostructure and the modification of the electronic structure of the catalyst. First-principles calculations based on density function theory indicate that Ru decreases the Gibbs free energy of water dissociation. This work presents a method to prepare an efficient electrocatalyst via dealloying of amorphous alloys.