An island-like Re-containing phytate bimetal nanocluster catalyst for exceptional overall glucose electrolysis hydrogen production.

This article focuses on the development and characterization of a bifunctional rhenium (Re)-containing phytate bimetal nanocluster catalyst, termed NiRe-IP6, uniformly prepared on nickel foam via chemical-induced deposition combined with self-assembly. The NiRe-IP6 catalyst enhances electrochemical active surface area, wettability, and electron transfer due to multi-valence Re and hydrophilic phytate molecules, enabling efficient glucose oxidation reaction (GOR) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) at high current densities (100 mA/cm²) with notably low overpotentials (1.28 V for GOR and −0.115 V for HER vs reversible hydrogen electrode). This catalyst outperforms most reported bifunctional GOR/HER catalysts, demonstrating excellent stability and high Faradaic efficiency (98.8%) in alkaline glucose electrolytes, suggesting promising applications for energy-saving hydrogen production through glucose electrolysis.