Ternary sulfide nanoparticles anchored in carbon bubble structure for oxygen evolution reaction

The synergistic effect and unique interfacial structure of ternary transition metal (Co, Ni, Fe) sulfides are significant in improving the catalytic performance of oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Herein, the ultrathin Co0.3Ni0.3Fe0.2S ternary sulfide nanoparticles (Co0.3Ni0.3Fe0.2S NPs) anchored in carbon bubble structure with rich pore structures (Co0.3Ni0.3Fe0.2S NPs/C) were firstly constructed via a cost-effective and general solid-phase synthesis strategy. Co0.3Ni0.3Fe0.2S NPs/C has a crystalline structure of Co1−xS, accompanying the shift of diffraction peaks, which indicate the doping of nickel and iron atoms into Co1−xS lattice. Co0.3Ni0.3Fe0.2S NPs/C catalyst has good OER activity with a low overpotential of 322 mV at 100 mA cm−2 in 1.0 M KOH electrolyte, superior to single metal sulfide synthesized at the same conditions. More importantly, the Co0.3Ni0.3Fe0.2S NPs/C catalyst possesses excellent stability with a low current density decrease in the continuous 336 h I-t test. The good catalytic intrinsic activity may originate from the synergistic effect among the highly exposed Fe, Co, and Ni sulfide grown on the porous carbon bubbles and the unique reconstruction structure formed during the OER process. This work provides some reference significance for the systematic study of the synergistic effects between multicomponents and the relationship between interfacial modulation and OER.