Low‐Cost Hydrogen‐Evolution Catalysts Based on Monolayer Platinum on Tungsten Monocarbide Substrates

How low can you go? The lower limits of platinum loading, in the sub-monolayer to monolayer range, have been explored for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). A low-cost substrate material, tungsten monocarbide (see picture; W blue, C small gray spheres) is capable of supporting monolayer amounts of platinum (large blue-gray spheres) to produce an electrocatalyst with the same HER activity as bulk platinum.