FeNi3/Ni2P heterojunction encapsulated in N-doped carbon nanotubes as an effective electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution reaction

Abstract Heterojunction construction is a vital strategy for the preparation of oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts by adjusting electronic properties. Herein, the heterojunction electrocatalyst consisting of FeNi3/Ni2P nanoparticles encapsulated in N-doped carbon nanotubes (FeNi3/Ni2P@NCNTs) was obtained by a simple synthetic method. FeNi3/Ni2P@NCNTs heterojunction effectively promoted the interface charge transfer between different components. Moreover, the prepared catalyst FeNi3/Ni2P@NCNTs exhibited extraordinary catalytic activity for OER in alkaline medium. The η10, Tafel slope, Cdl for OER were 298 mV, 81.82 mV dec−1 and 14.35 mF cm−2, respectively. Besides, no visible variation after stability test for 100 h continuously. Remarkable catalytic activity is given the credit to the autocatalytic growth of carbon nanotubes, the synergistic effect of Ni2P and FeNi3 on the interface of heterojunction and the optimized electronic structure.