MOF-Derived Bimetallic FeNi Selenide for an Efficient Oxygen Evolution Reaction

The sluggish four-electron-transfer kinetics of the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) severely hinder the efficiency of hydrogen production via water electrolysis. Developing highly efficient catalysts to overcome their high overpotential has become a major challenge in this field. In this study, an MOF-derived Fe–Ni3Se2/Ni3Se4/Ni foam OER catalyst was successfully synthesized via a solvothermal method and room-temperature cation exchange using Ni-BPDC as the precursor. In a 1 M KOH electrolyte, the catalyst requires overpotentials of only 209 mV and 316 mV to reach current densities of 10 mA cm–2 and 100 mA cm–2, respectively, and exhibits stable catalytic operation at 100 mA cm–2 for 65 h. Fe doping not only optimizes the electronic structure of the material but also induces the formation of a Ni3Se2/Ni3Se4 heterojunction; this heterojunction effectively accelerates electron transfer, and the two effects synergistically enhance the kinetics of the OER. This work provides new experimental insights into the design and preparation of high-performance, low-cost electrocatalysts for water-splitting.