Natural superoxide dismutase inspired Heterostructural N, S-Codoped CoFe₂O₄/MoC Electrocatalyst for highly efficient water splitting

Changcheng Lin; Huaibao Tang; Jun Xu; Dongmeng Chen; Xueqin Zuo; Qun Yang; Zhong Jin; Haifeng Xu; Guang Li

doi:10.1016/j.jcis.2025.138249

Natural superoxide dismutase inspired Heterostructural N, S-Codoped CoFe₂O₄/MoC Electrocatalyst for highly efficient water splitting

J Colloid Interface Sci. 2025 Jun 20;699(Pt 2):138249. doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2025.138249. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Changcheng Lin¹, Huaibao Tang², Jun Xu³, Dongmeng Chen⁴, Xueqin Zuo⁵, Qun Yang⁵, Zhong Jin⁶, Haifeng Xu⁷, Guang Li⁸

Affiliations

¹ School of Materials Science and Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, PR China.
² School of Physics and Optoelectrics, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, PR China. Electronic address: hbtang@ahu.edu.cn.
³ ABA Chemicals (Shanghai) Limited, Shanghai 200063, China.
⁴ College of Science, China University of Petroleum, Qingdao 266580, China.
⁵ School of Physics and Optoelectrics, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, PR China.
⁶ State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, MOE Key Laboratory of Mesoscopic Chemistry, MOE Key Laboratory of High Performance Polymer Materials and Technology, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Advanced Organic Materials, Suzhou Key Laboratory of Green Intelligent Manufacturing of New Energy Materials and Devices, Tianchang New Materials and Energy Technology Research Center, Institute of Green Chemistry and Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210023, PR China. Electronic address: zhongjin@nju.edu.cn.
⁷ School of Information Engineering, Suzhou University, Suzhou 234000, PR China. Electronic address: xuhaifeng@ahszu.edu.cn.
⁸ School of Materials Science and Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, PR China; Anhui Key Laboratory of Information Materials and Devices, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, PR China. Electronic address: liguang1971@ahu.edu.cn.

PMID: 40570598
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2025.138249

Abstract

Current research on heterojunctions as catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) primarily emphasizes the electron transfer processes at the heterojunction interface. However, the regulatory role of doped elements within heterostructures remains inadequately explored, despite its significant scientific implications for the advancement of efficient catalysts. Inspired by the catalytic superoxide dismutation reaction of superoxide dismutase (SOD) observed in nature, this study presents a novel heterostructural N and S co-doped CoFe₂O₄/MoC electrocatalyst. The incorporation of N and S induces a distinctive 'electron-dragging' effect within the CoFe₂O₄/MoC heterostructural system, selectively modulating the reception and release of electrons during HER and OER processes, thereby ensuring an optimal electron density at various active sites. The designed N, S-CoFe₂O₄/MoC-NS electrocatalyst achieves a total hydrolysis current density of 100 mA cm^-2 at a potential as low as 1.47 V and maintains stable output for 300 h without degradation. Theoretical calculations and in-situ Raman spectroscopy suggest that the formation of the heterostructure and the 'electron-dragging 'effect are crucial in regulating different active sites, providing new insights into the balance between catalyst activity and stability.

Keywords: Doped elements; Electrocatalytic redox reactions; Electron-dragging; Heterostructures; N, S-CoFe(2)O(4)/MoC-NS.