One-Step Synthesis of Self-Supported Nickel Phosphide Nanosheet Array Cathodes for Efficient Electrocatalytic Hydrogen Generation.

Nickel phosphide is an emerging low-cost, earth-abundant catalyst that can efficiently reduce water to generate hydrogen. However, the synthesis of nickel phosphide catalysts usually involves multiple steps and is laborious. Herein, a convenient and straightforward approach to the synthesis of a three-dimensional (3D) self-supported biphasic Ni5P4-Ni2P nanosheet (NS) array cathode is presented, which is obtained by direct phosphorization of commercially available nickel foam using phosphorus vapor. The synthesized 3D Ni5P4-Ni2P-NS array cathode exhibits outstanding electrocatalytic activity and long-term durability toward the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in acidic medium. The fabrication procedure reported here is scalable, showing substantial promise for use in water electrolysis. More importantly, the approach can be readily extended to synthesize other self-supported transition metal phosphide HER cathodes.