Ru nanoparticles modified Ni₃Se₄/Ni(OH)₂ heterostructure nanosheets: A fast kinetics boosted bifunctional overall water splitting electrocatalyst

Properly design and manufacture of bifunctional electrocatalysts with superb performance and endurance are crucial for overall water splitting. The interfacial engineering strategy is acknowledged as a promising approach to enhance catalytic performance of overall water splitting catalysts. Herein, the Ru nanoparticles modified Ni₃Se₄/Ni(OH)₂ heterostructured nanosheets catalyst was constructed using a simple two-step hydrothermal process. The experimental results demonstrate that the abundant heterointerfaces between Ru and Ni₃Se₄/Ni(OH)₂ can increase the number of active sites and effectively regulate the electronic structure, greatly accelerating the kinetics of the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER)/oxygen evolution reaction (OER). As a result, the Ru/Ni₃Se₄/Ni(OH)₂/NF catalyst exhibits the low overpotential of 102.8 mV and 334.5 mV at 100 mA cm^-2 for HER and OER in alkaline medium, respectively. Furthermore, a two-electrode system composed of the Ru/Ni₃Se₄/Ni(OH)₂/NF requires a battery voltage of just 1.51 V at 10 mA cm^-2 and remains stable for 200 h at 500 mA cm^-2. This work provides an effective strategy for constructing Ru-based heterostructured catalysts with excellent catalytic activity.