Polyaniline-coated mesoporous Rh films for nonacidic hydrogen evolution reaction

Abstract Hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) from water electrolysis in alkaline and neutral media provides a possibility to produce pure hydrogen fuel on a large scale. Therefore, the exploration of highly efficient non-Pt HER electrocatalysts is of great significance. Herein, polyaniline (PANI)-coated mesoporous Rh film on Ni foam is controllably fabricated by a micelle-assisted replacement reaction and the subsequent surface modification. Profiting from the synergetic effect of interconnected mesoporous structure, high electrical conductivity of PANI and the modified electronic structure of Rh, the synthesized mRh@PANI film exhibits superior HER electrocatalytic activity and durability in alkaline and neutral electrolytes. To reach a current density of 50 mA cm−2, low overpotentials of 37 and 69 mV are required in 1 M KOH and 1 M PBS solutions, respectively.