Rapid Microwave-Assisted Synthesis of Ru@NC Catalysts for Long-Lasting Hydrogen Evolution Catalysis

Even chemically stable Pt and Ru-based catalysts suffer from activity degradation under high-current hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) conditions, limiting the performance of water electrolysis. Encapsulating nanoparticles (NPs) with carbon shells is a promising way to enhance catalyst stability. Herein, Ru NPs encapsulated in N-doped carbon shells (Ru@NC) are synthesized via rapid microwave-assisted pyrolysis of a bimetallic metal-triazole framework. Specifically, the Ru@NC catalyst demonstrates remarkable catalytic performance, achieving current densities of 100 and 1000 mA cm⁻² with overpotentials of only 77 and 287 mV, respectively, in 1 м KOH. Moreover, it exhibited extraordinary long-term stability toward high-current HER (1000 mA cm⁻² for 500 h), outperforming bare Ru nanoparticle catalysts. The synergistic effects of the protective carbon shell and metal-support interaction provide both physical confinement and chemical stabilization, effectively preventing nanoparticle agglomeration and intrinsic activity decay. This work introduces a versatile strategy for preparing N-doped carbon-shell-coated NPs and highlights the critical role of the shell in enhancing both the stability and activity of catalysts for high-current HER.