Menny Shalom

The investigation of nickel phosphide (Ni₅P₄) as a catalyst for the hydrogen (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in strong acidic and alkaline environment is described. The catalyst can be grown in a 3D hierarchical structure directly on a nickel substrate, thus making it an ideal candidate for practical water splitting devices. The activity of the catalyst towards the HER, together with its high stability especially in acidic solution, makes it one of the best non-noble materials described to date. Furthermore, Ni₅P₄ was investigated in the OER and showed activity superior to pristine nickel or platinum. The practical relevance of Ni₅P₄ as a bifunctional catalyst for the overall water splitting reaction was demonstrated, with 10mA cm^-2 achieved below 1.7V.