Research Progress on Clay-Based Materials for Electrocatalytic Water Splitting

Clay-based materials are an emerging family of earth-abundant and low-cost inorganic functional materials with an modifiable layered-structure mode similar to hydroxides. They are considered as competitive electrocatalysts for water splitting due to their variable intra-layer ions, exchangeable interlayer molecules/ions, and large reaction surfaces, which demonstrate fascinating engineering opportunities at the microscale, mesoscale, and macroscale levels. We systematically summarized the research progress of clay-based materials by classifying clay-like compounds, clay-based composites, and clay-based derivatives, from the viewpoint of structural geometries towards optimizing functionalities. The design strategies for regulating and optimizing clay-based materials to meet the requirements of electrocatalysts with excellent activity and stability were outlined through representative examples. In addition, the hydrogen production applications of these clay-based materials were discussed reasonably including recent advances. Finally, the future perspectives of clay-based materials for electrocatalytic water splitting were demonstrated.