Investigation of Active Spots on a TiC@MnSe Nanocomposite: An Efficient Electrocatalyst for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction

Electrocatalysts with outstanding electrochemical performance and ecofriendly nature are desired for water-splitting studies to develop substantial hydrogen energy resources. In this report, a titanium carbide (TiC), MnSe, and novel TiC@MnSe heterostructure nanocomposite has been prepared by a facile hydrothermal process and analyzed using physical and electrochemical tools for electrocatalytic water splitting via the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). The heterostructure TiC@MnSe catalyst possesses a reduced overpotential of 299 mV at a universal standard current density of 10 mA/cm², a small Tafel slope of 48.4 mV/dec, a large C_dl 54 mF, an enhanced electrochemical functional surface area of 1350 cm², a low charge transfer resistance of 1.13 Ω, and robust stability after 70 h constant vigorous OER activity in an alkaline medium. The fabricated catalyst exhibits an encapsulated heterostructure morphology that supplies the active channels for the OER and remarkably boosts the electrochemical activity of the proposed catalyst for electrochemical water splitting (EWS). This work presents the superb electrochemical activity of the metal chalcogenide-based composite TiC@MnSe and addresses the fundamental reason for its robust performance. The research outcome pushes for large-scale electrochemical commercial applications, and the proposed TiC@MnSe can act as a cutting edge against costly noble metal-based electrocatalysts.