Journal article
Robust Ti―N Interface in MXene-C2N Heterostructures for Ultra-Durable Acidic Hydrogen Evolution
Advanced functional materials
12 Feb 2026
Featured in Collection : UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
Abstract
Durable, cost-effective hydrogen evolution in acidic media requires electrocatalysts that can rival platinum in catalytic activity and stability. We report atomically engineered Ti3C2Tx@C2N heterostructure exploiting robust Ti-N interfacial bonding and electronic coupling to deliver platinum-like performance without noble metals. The hybrid catalyst exhibits ultralow overpotential of 42 mV at 10 mA cm-2 and Tafel slope of 36 mV dec-1, approaching commercial Pt/C benchmarks. More importantly, it maintains stable operation over 550 h at 100 mA cm-2 in corrosive acidic medium, far surpassing Pt/C. Structural analyses and density functional theory reveal that Ti & horbar;N interface optimizes hydrogen adsorption free energy and lowers the kinetic barrier for O & horbar;H bond cleavage, while the porous C2N scaffold enhances charge transport and active site accessibility. This synergistic structural and electronic design establishes a generalizable strategy for robust heterostructures, advancing scalable platinum-free electrocatalysts for next-generation proton exchange membrane electrolyzers and other energy conversion technologies.
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Details
- Title
- Robust Ti―N Interface in MXene-C2N Heterostructures for Ultra-Durable Acidic Hydrogen Evolution
- Creators
- Mousumi Garai - Creative ResearchJayaraman Balamurugan - Korea Advanced Institute of Science and TechnologyZakir Ullah - Institut de Ciència de Materials de BarcelonaManmatha Mahato - Creative ResearchGeetha Valurouthu - Drexel UniversityJawon Ha - Creative ResearchSujin Cha - Korea Advanced Institute of Science and TechnologyHabib Ullah - University of ExeterHyunjoon Yoo - Creative ResearchAkash Deo - Creative ResearchYury Gogotsi - Drexel UniversitySang Ouk Kim - Korea Adv Inst Sci & Technol KAIST, Dept Mat Sci & Engn, Daejeon, South KoreaIl-Kwon Oh - Korea Adv Inst Sci & Technol KAIST, Natl Creat Res Initiat Functionally Antagonist Nan, Dept Mech Engn, Daejeon, South Korea
- Publication Details
- Advanced functional materials
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Number of pages
- 11
- Grant note
- RS-2024-00450477 / Nano & Material Technology Development Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) - Ministry of Science and ICT; National Research Foundation of Korea; Ministry of Science, ICT & Future Planning, Republic of Korea RS-2024-00345241; RS-2025-00521316; RS-2023-00302525 / National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) - Korean government (MSIT); National Research Foundation of Korea; Ministry of Science & ICT (MSIT), Republic of Korea
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Materials Science and Engineering
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:001687383400001
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-105029965079
- Other Identifier
- 991022162826104721
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- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- International collaboration
- Web of Science research areas
- Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
- Chemistry, Physical
- Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
- Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
- Physics, Applied
- Physics, Condensed Matter