The hydrogen evolution reaction is a crucial step in electrochemical water splitting. The most efficient catalysts for this reaction in acidic media are Pt based, but the high cost of Pt limits its practical applications. We developed a novel matrix architecture in which a trace amount of Pt is alloyed in situ with Ru nanoparticles uniformly and partially embedded in porous carbon spheres. The synthetic procedure is simple and efficient. Surface enrichment of metallic Pt nanoclusters on PtRu alloy nanoparticles results in weak bonding with hydrogen and rapid hydrated proton dissociation. These effects significantly increase the electrocatalytic activity in the hydrogen evolution process. This robust catalyst, with a Pt loading 99.9% less than that of a commercial Pt-based catalyst, gave a high turnover frequency (4.03 H₂ s⁻¹), a small Tafel slope (27.2 mV dec⁻¹), and comparable overpotentials (19.7 mV and 43.1 mV), as well as achieved current densities of 10 and 100 mA cm⁻², i.e., better than those obtained with commercial Pt/C catalyst, in 0.5 M H₂SO₄. This structure prevents nanoparticles from dissolving, agglomerating, and detaching during long-term operation; therefore there was no obvious decrease in catalytic activity after continuous reaction.

中文翻译：

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通过铂纳米团簇与钌原位嵌入碳中合金化的表面富集来增强氢气分解反应的电催化性能†

析氢反应是电化学水分解的关键步骤。在酸性介质中，该反应最有效的催化剂是基于Pt的催化剂，但是Pt的高成本限制了其实际应用。我们开发了一种新颖的矩阵体系结构，其中将痕量的Pt原位合金化纳米粒子均匀且部分地嵌入多孔碳球中。合成过程简单有效。PtRu合金纳米粒子上金属Pt纳米团簇的表面富集导致与氢的键合弱和水合质子快速分解。这些作用显着增加了氢气释放过程中的电催化活性。这种坚固的催化剂的Pt含量比市售Pt基催化剂低99.9％，具有较高的周转频率（4.03 H ₂ s ^-1），小的Tafel斜率（27.2 mV dec ^-1）和可比较的超电势（19.7 mV和43.1 mV），以及达到的电流密度10和100 mA cm ^-2，即在0.5 MH ₂ SO _4中，比用商业Pt / C催化剂获得的更好。这种结构可防止纳米粒子在长期运行过程中溶解，团聚和脱离。因此，连续反应后催化活性没有明显降低。