Cobalt phosphide nanoparticles film growth on carbon cloth: A high-performance cathode for electrochemical hydrogen evolution

•CoP nanoparticles film on carbon cloth (CoP NPs/CC) was derived from Co NPs/CC.•CoP NPs/CC acts as an acid-stable hydrogen evolution cathode with superior activity.•CoP NPs/CC exhibits long-term electrochemical stability.

In this communication, cobalt phosphide nanoparticles film was developed on carbon cloth (CoP NPs/CC) through low-temperature phosphidation of its corresponding Co NPs/CC precursor. When directly used as a cathode for electrochemical hydrogen evolution in strongly acidic solutions, the CoP NPs/CC electrode exhibits high performance with a low onset overpotential of 33 mV, a Tafel slope of 70 mV dec−1 and a Faradaic efficiency of nearly 100%. This catalyst maintain its catalytic activity for at least 30 h and only needs overpotentials of 48 and 190 mV to attain current densities of 10 and 100 mA cm−2, respectively.