Oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) are crucial for renewable energy technologies such as water splitting. Borophene, a two-dimensional (2D) boron material, has attracted significant interest for its unique electron deficiency and potential applications in energy conversion. However, practical studies on borophene’s electrocatalytic performance remain limited. Here, we demonstrate a strategy to enhance the bifunctional electrocatalytic activity in HER and OER of borophene by doping with zirconium compounds. The addition of Zr to boron enhances electrocatalytic properties by improving performance in both OER and HER, achieving overpotentials and Tafel slopes of 252 and 240 mV, 43 and 203 mV/dec, respectively. Additionally, conducting the measurements at 40 °C led to achieving the overall water-splitting potential of 1.541 (V vs. RHE). Stability tests over 1000 h at ± 10 mA/cm2 highlight the composite’s robustness, outperforming Pt/C in HER and matching the stability of RuO2 in OER. Ex-situ analyses: X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) reveal insights into the chemical structure evolution during the electrochemical process. This study not only advances the understanding of borophene’s electrocatalytic mechanisms but also paves the way for its application in efficient and sustainable energy technologies.

中文翻译：

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双功能锆石掺杂硼烯的电催化水分解


析氧反应 （OER） 和析氢反应 （HER） 对于水分解等可再生能源技术至关重要。Borophene 是一种二维 （2D） 硼材料，因其独特的电子缺陷和在能量转换中的潜在应用而引起了人们的极大兴趣。然而，关于硼烯电催化性能的实际研究仍然有限。在这里，我们展示了一种通过掺杂锆化合物来增强硼吩 HER 和 OER 中双功能电催化活性的策略。在硼中添加 Zr 通过提高 OER 和 HER 的性能来增强电催化性能，分别实现 252 和 240 mV、43 和 203 mV/dec 的过电位和塔菲尔斜率。此外，在 40 °C 下进行测量后，实现了 1.541 的总分解水电位（V vs. RHE）。在 ± 10 mA/cm2 下超过 1000 小时的稳定性测试突出了复合材料的稳健性，在 HER 中优于 Pt/C，与 RuO2 在 OER 中的稳定性相匹配。非原位分析：X 射线光电子能谱 （XPS）、电子顺磁共振 （EPR） 和 X 射线衍射 （XRD） 揭示了电化学过程中化学结构演变的见解。这项研究不仅促进了对硼烯电催化机制的理解，而且为其在高效和可持续能源技术中的应用铺平了道路。