Citation: Yanhui Lu, Chengang Pei, Wenqiang Li, Qing Liu, Huan Pang, Xu Yu. Tailoring active sites of cerium and nitrogen Co-doped rhenium disulfide for enhanced hydrogen evolution reaction[J]. Chinese Chemical Letters, ;2025, 36(12): 111646. doi: 10.1016/j.cclet.2025.111646 shu

Tailoring active sites of cerium and nitrogen Co-doped rhenium disulfide for enhanced hydrogen evolution reaction

Yanhui Lu ^a ,
Chengang Pei ^a ,
Wenqiang Li ^c ,
Qing Liu ^d ,
Huan Pang ^{a, b, *,} ,
Xu Yu ^{a, *,}

a.
Institute of Innovation Materials and Energy, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225002, China
b.
State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
c.
Key Laboratory of Function-oriented Porous Materials, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Luoyang Normal University, Luoyang 471934, China
d.
Institute of Engineering Technology, SINOPEC Catalyst Co., Ltd., Beijing 101111, China

panghuan@yzu.edu.cn

yxypz15@yzu.edu.cn

Received Date: 24 March 2025
Revised Date: 25 July 2025
Accepted Date: 29 July 2025
Available Online: 30 July 2025

Figures(4)

The construction of electrocatalysts with exceptional intrinsic activity and rich active sites has proven to be an effective strategy for remarkably enhancing the activity of the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Here, self-supporting cerium (Ce) and nitrogen (N)-doped rhenium disulfide nanosheets (denoted Ce, N-ReS₂) grown on carbon fiber paper have been successfully synthesized. Ce and N doping modulates the lattice irregularity and adjusts the electronic configuration of rhenium disulfide, resulting in reduced hydrogen adsorption/desorption energy and enhanced catalytic stability. The optimized Ce, N-ReS₂ electrocatalysts exhibit superior catalytic activities of 44/130 and 79/139 mV at 10/100 mA/cm² for HER in alkaline and acidic media, respectively, along with robust durability. Both experimental results and density functional theory calculations indicate that the electronic structure of ReS₂ can be significantly altered by strategically incorporating Ce and N into the lattice, which in turn optimizes the Gibbs free energy of HER intermediates and accelerates the electrochemical kinetics. This study provides a potentially effective approach for the design and optimization of innovative electrocatalysts involving the regulation of anion and cation dual-doping and architectural engineering.
- Rhenium disulfide,
- Dual-doped,
- Defect,
- Density functional theory,
- Hydrogen evolution
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