Synthesis of transition metal nitride nanomaterials for electrocatalytic applications

Transition metal nitrides (TMNs) have been considered as promising alternative catalysts to noble metals in various electrocatalytic applications due to their noble metal-like electronic structures, high conductivity, low cost, as well as strong chemical stability, which could resist corrosion and oxidation in harsh operation conditions. Therefore, the rational design and controlled synthesis of TMNs with distinct structures play a vital role in developing highly efficient electrocatalysts toward electrochemical applications. This review provides a comprehensive summary of representative synthetic strategies for TMNs, such as direct nitridation, solid-state reaction, sol-gel assisted reaction, and wet-chemical reaction, presents the distinct structural characterizations, and demonstrates their advances in the electrochemical applications. Finally, we propose the remaining challenges and the future research directions on the exploration of TMNs with well-defined structures for electrocatalytic applications, which could shed light on the future development of high-performance electrocatalysts.