Facile synthesis of mesoporous TiC-C nanocomposite microsphere efficient for hydrogen evolution

Abstract

Abstract Mesoporous TiC-C nanocomposite microspheres have been facilely and successfully synthesized by a soft-template assisted hydrothermal method. The as-obtained hollow TiC-C microspheres presented large surface area. The fabricated TiC-C microsphere worked as an efficient electrocatalyst, displaying much improved performance in the hydrogen evolution reaction in comparison with the commercial TiC catalyst. The TiC-C microsphere was also a good candidate support to load 5\u202fwt% Pt, which exhibited much better performance and lower onset potential in comparison with the commercial 20\u202fwt% Pt@C. Our findings suggest that synthesis of the microsphere structure may provide a great opportunity to improve catalytic properties for hydrogen evolution.