Dealloying of an amorphous TiCuRu alloy results in a nanostructured electrocatalyst for hydrogen evolution reaction

Abstract Development of an electrocatalyst that is cheap and has good properties to replace conventional noble metals is important for H₂ applications. In this study, dealloying of an amorphous Ti₃₇Cu₆₀Ru₃ alloy was performed to prepare a free‐standing nanostructured hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) catalyst. The effect of dealloying and addition of Ru to TiCu alloys on the microstructure and HER properties under alkaline conditions was investigated. 3 at.% Ru addition in Ti₄₀Cu₆₀ decreases the overpotential to reach a current density of 10 mA cm⁻² and Tafel slope of the dealloyed samples to 35 and 34 mV dec⁻¹. The improvement of electrocatalytic properties was attributed to the formation of a nanostructure and the modification of the electronic structure of the catalyst. First‐principles calculations based on density function theory indicate that Ru decreases the Gibbs free energy of water dissociation. This work presents a method to prepare an efficient electrocatalyst via dealloying of amorphous alloys.