Construction of a hierarchical CoP@Ni-MOF heterostructure on nickel foam for efficient hydrogen evolution reaction

The development of highly active and stable non-precious metal electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is essential to advance sustainable hydrogen production through water electrolysis. Herein, we present a rationally designed hierarchical CoP@Ni-MOF/NF heterostructure directly anchored on nickel foam (NF), constructed through a two-step strategy involving in-situ growth followed by electrodeposition. This configuration enables synergistic integration of the high surface area and porous architecture of a Ni-MOF with the catalytically active sites of CoP. The resulting CoP@Ni-MOF/NF electrode exhibits outstanding HER performance in 1.0 M KOH, achieving an ultralow overpotential of 128 mV at 10 mA cm-2. Electrochemical analyses further evidenced a large electrochemical active surface area of 1063.75 cm2 mg-1. Moreover, the catalyst maintains high performance over 2000 cyclic voltammetry (CV) cycles and 24 h stability test, underscoring its robust durability. The enhanced electrocatalytic properties are primarily attributed to the significantly increased surface active area resulting from the hierarchical heterostructure formed by the integration of CoP and Ni-MOF.