Sub-5 nm Au and AuAg nanoclusters grafted onto carbon nitride for enhanced electrocatalytic H2 evolution

Metallic nanoparticles grafted onto carbon surfaces serve as well-known active sites for catalyzing important electrocatalytic reactions that require high activation potentials. In this work, we report an easy approach to synthesizing Au and AuAg nanoparticles (sub-5 nm) homogeneously distributed on the graphitic carbon nitride (C 3 N 4 ) semiconductor surface. Several advanced physicochemical characterization techniques confirm the presence and uniform distribution of metallic content (Au and AuAg) on C 3 N 4 . In electrochemical measurements for the Hydrogen Evolution Reaction (HER), the Au-g-C 3 N 4 sample exhibits the best electrocatalytic activity among all tested samples. Density functional theory calculations corroborate the experimental results, confirming subtle changes in the electronic structure that enhance hydrogen evolution activity at the nanometallic active sites. The results suggest that stable interactions between metallic nanoclusters and the C 3 N 4 monolayer drive the excellent electrocatalytic activity of the as prepared nanohybrids.