Electrochemical hydrogen evolution catalyzed by SrMoO4 spindle particles in acid water

In this work, SrMoO4 spindle particles have been examined as hydrogen evolving electrocatalysts for the first time in acid water electrolytes. Strontium molybdate spindle particles were prepared by conventional hydrothermal method. The products obtained were characterized by X ray diffraction (XRD) and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) studies were performed on these particles using H2SO4 solutions with two different concentrations, namely, 0.5 M and 2.5 M. The HER activity of SrMoO4 samples have been compared with that of alpha-MoO3. An increased rate of hydrogen evolution was observed for SrMoO4. It has also been noticed that the HER overpotential decreased and the current density increased when the SrMoO4 electrodes were subjected to continuous scan cycling in the acid electrolytes. Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopic (EIS) studies indicated that the lesser preparative reaction time of SrMoO4 resulted in decrease in the HER charge transfer resistance. Copyright (C) 2013, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.