Mechanically alloyed nanocrystalline Ni-Mo powders: A new technique for producing active electrodes for catalysis

Abstract
We report on the effect of strong mechanical deformations on various mixtures of Ni and Mo metallic powders. The high-energy mechanical alloying process produces metastable fcc nanocrystals of Ni with a large amount of Mo in solid solution. The solubility limit of Mo in fcc Ni at room temperature is directly related to the total interface area between the crystallites. These new solids show an extremely high electrocatalytic activity for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in alkaline solutions which can be directly related to their nanostructure.