From inertness to efficiency: immobilizing Au-Bi heterostructures on a graphite substrate to drive the hydrogen evolution reaction.
6 affiliations
- 1Electrochemistry & Catalysis Research Laboratory (ECRL), Department of Chemistry, School of Physical Sciences, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology Sylhet-3114 Bangladesh [email protected].
- 2Advanced Materials and Nano-Research Centre (AMNRC), Najran University Najran 11001 Saudi Arabia [email protected].
- 3Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Arts, Najran University Najran 11001 Saudi Arabia.
- 4Center for Nanotechnology, Department of Natural Sciences, Coppin State University 2500 W. North Ave. Baltimore MD 21216 USA.
- 5Department of Mechanical Engineering, Iowa State University Ames Iowa 50011 USA.
- 6Advanced Polymer Laboratory, Department of Polymer Science and Technology, Government College of Engineering and Leather Technology (Post-Graduate) Kolkata 700106 West Bengal India.
Abstract
In this study, we fabricated Au-Bi heterostructures on a pencil graphite (GP) support to generate hydrogen from water splitting under acidic conditions. Au particles, with their electronically filled 5d band, and Bi particles, known for their strong tendency toward surface oxide formation, exhibit limited intrinsic activity toward the HER. Remarkably, their integration produces an Au-Bi@GP electrode with substantially boosted hydrogen-evolution activity compared with the corresponding individual components. The Au@GP and Bi@GP electrodes require 486 mV and 442 mV to attain a 10 mA cm⁻² current, respectively. But, while Au and Bi particles are integrated on the GP surface, the resultant Au-Bi@GP electrode requires only 139 mV to achieve the same current intensity showcasing its efficient hydrogen production. A Tafel slope of 141.4 mV dec⁻¹ indicates that the HER is governed by the Volmer step indicating proton adsorption as the rate-limiting process. The electrode showed stable HER performance with negligible loss after 25 h of chronoamperometry test and 1000 voltametric runs. These results reveal an intriguing 'inert-to-active' transformation arising from the integration of two naturally sluggish HER (Au and Bi) elements and highlight interfacial engineering as an auspicious strategy for developing unconventional electrocatalysts for acidic hydrogen generation.
Related
- CoP/Co ₂ P heterostructures embedded in biomass-derived carbons as efficient electrocatalysts for hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions
- Elucidating the Action Mechanism of the Carbon Substrate in Pt/C-Catalyzed Alkaline Hydrogen Evolution Reaction
- Realizing irradiation-resistant metallic alloys by immobilizing induced defects
- Structure and leaching characteristics of basaltic glass-ceramics for immobilizing simulated actinides La, Ce and Nd
- Stepwise Pre‐Treatment Enables Tunable Phase Evolution for High‐Efficiency Co‐Evaporated and Sulfurized Cu 2 ZnSnS 4 Solar Cells
BibTeX
@article{rashid2026from,
title = {{From inertness to efficiency: immobilizing Au-Bi heterostructures on a graphite substrate to drive the hydrogen evolution reaction.}},
author = {Kazi Hamidur Rashid and Nure Alam Siddique and Rehana Akter and Jahir Ahmed and M Faisal and Jari S Algethami and Farid A Harraz and Jamal Uddin and Md Musfiqur Rahman and Nayan Ranjan Singha and Mohammad A Hasnat},
journal = {RSC advances},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1039/d6ra08299h},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42899162},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - From inertness to efficiency: immobilizing Au-Bi heterostructures on a graphite substrate to drive the hydrogen evolution reaction.
AU - Kazi Hamidur Rashid
AU - Nure Alam Siddique
AU - Rehana Akter
AU - Jahir Ahmed
AU - M Faisal
AU - Jari S Algethami
AU - Farid A Harraz
AU - Jamal Uddin
AU - Md Musfiqur Rahman
AU - Nayan Ranjan Singha
AU - Mohammad A Hasnat
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/19
JO - RSC advances
DO - 10.1039/d6ra08299h
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42899162
AB - In this study, we fabricated Au-Bi heterostructures on a pencil graphite (GP) support to generate hydrogen from water splitting under acidic conditions. Au particles, with their electronically filled 5d band, and Bi particles, known for their strong tendency toward surface oxide formation, exhibit limited intrinsic activity toward the HER. Remarkably, their integration produces an Au-Bi@GP electrode with substantially boosted hydrogen-evolution activity compared with the corresponding individual components. The Au@GP and Bi@GP electrodes require 486 mV and 442 mV to attain a 10 mA cm⁻² current, respectively. But, while Au and Bi particles are integrated on the GP surface, the resultant Au-Bi@GP electrode requires only 139 mV to achieve the same current intensity showcasing its efficient hydrogen production. A Tafel slope of 141.4 mV dec⁻¹ indicates that the HER is governed by the Volmer step indicating proton adsorption as the rate-limiting process. The electrode showed stable HER performance with negligible loss after 25 h of chronoamperometry test and 1000 voltametric runs. These results reveal an intriguing 'inert-to-active' transformation arising from the integration of two naturally sluggish HER (Au and Bi) elements and highlight interfacial engineering as an auspicious strategy for developing unconventional electrocatalysts for acidic hydrogen generation.
SN - 2046-2069
ER -