Direct fabrication of gallium-doped nanoporous Pt on a Pt mesh for water splitting

The development of highly active and durable electrocatalysts has attracted substantial attention within the realm of green energy production. Nevertheless, attaining suitable industrial applications for synthetic catalysts still poses a crucial challenge. In this study, we propose a conceptual and experimental methodology for designing gallium-doped nanoporous Pt on Pt surfaces <i>via</i> an "alloying-dealloying" strategy. These structures are directly applicable to the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). They exhibit a low overpotential of merely 62 mV at 200 mA cm^-2 and a Tafel slope of 31.01 mV dec^-1, signifying remarkable activity and stability. Moreover, the water-splitting system incorporating NpPt(Ga) and commercial RuO₂ exhibits an overpotential of only 1.75 V at 200 mA cm^-2, which is far superior to the values for the existing 20% Pt/C and RuO₂ systems. Through comprehensive structural analysis and DFT calculations, we disclose that the sheet-like structure and trace Ga doping substantially enhance the activity and stability of the catalyst.