Partially Exfoliated and Oxidized V2CTx MXene as a Beneficial Support for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction

The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) plays a critical role in water-splitting technologies. Hence, developing efficient and stable OER electrocatalysts is one of the key parameters to improve this technology. Recently, MXenes, such as Ti₃C₂Tₓ and V₂CTₓ, have shown promise as OER-enhancing additives when combined with metal oxides. However, MXenes can degrade upon oxidation in various environments, such as air, or during electrochemical reactions. In this study, we explore whether partially exfoliated and oxidized V₂CTₓ remains beneficial for OER electrocatalysis by intentionally oxidizing V₂CTₓ and incorporating it into CuCo-based composites. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) confirmed the presence of vanadium oxide species in the partially exfoliated and oxidized V₂CTₓ. The electrochemical investigations revealed that the partially exfoliated and oxidized V₂CTₓ enhances the OER performance compared to fresh V₂CTₓ. These findings suggest that, unlike Ti₃C₂Tₓ, partial exfoliated and oxidized V₂CTₓ retains its functionality in OER catalysis and even outperforms its fresh counterpart, providing a robust and efficient platform for water-splitting applications.