Waste-yeast biomass as nitrogen/phosphorus sources and carbon template: Environment-friendly synthesis of N,P-Mo₂C nanoparticles on porous carbon matrix for efficient hydrogen evolution

Tailor-made advanced electrocatalysts with high active and stable for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) play a key role in the development of hydrogen economy. Herein, a N,P-co-doped molybdenum carbide confined in porous carbon matrix (N,P-Mo₂C/NPC) with a hierarchical structure is prepared by a resources recovery process. The N,P-Mo₂C/NPC compound exhibits outstanding HER activity with a low overpotential of 84 mV to achieve 10 mA/cm², and excellent stability in alkaline media. The electrochemical measurements confirm that the enhanced HER activity of N,P-Mo₂C/NPC is ascribe to the synergy of N,P-codoped and porous carbon matrix. Density functional theory calculations further reveal that the electron density of active sites on Mo₂C can be regulated by the N/P doping, leading to optimal H adsorption strength. In this work, the proof-of-concept resource utilization, a microorganism derived molybdenum carbide electrocatalyst for HER is fabricated, which may inaugurate a new way for designing electrocatalysts by the utilization of solid waste.