Incorporation of CeO 2 with Ni-Co mixed metal phosphide boosts electrochemical seawater oxidation performance.

Electrochemical seawater oxidation has been regarded as one of the most promising strategies for cost-efficient production of hydrogen from the standpoint of sustainability, but suffers from a competitive chlorine evolution/oxidation reaction. Herein, we report a facile hard templated route to fabricate CeO 2 incorporated Ni-Co mixed metal phosphide embedded in a carbon matrix (CeO 2 -Co 2- x Ni x P@C). Benefiting from compositional and structural features, the obtained CeO 2 -Co 2- x Ni x P@C possesses remarkably improved OER performance in 1 M KOH ( η = 295 mV at 10 mA cm -2 ) compared with Co 2- x Ni x P@C. More importantly, the catalytic activity and stability is retained well after changing fresh water to seawater to constitute the working electrolyte. The promotion effect of CeO 2 can be attributed to its unique capability in regulating the surface state of catalysts, contributing to efficient inhibition of chlorine competition.