Recent advances in rhenium-based nanostructures for enhanced electrocatalysis

Precious metals and related compounds typically exhibit superb catalytic activity for electrocatalytic water splitting. However, further enhancement of catalytic performance encounters a bottleneck that originates from limited regulation strategies. As an electrocatalyst, rhenium (Re)-based materials have become high-potential catalytic materials in recent years due to their unique 1 T (1T′) phase structure, weak interlayer coupling, direct bandgap semiconductivity, and in-plane anisotropy. These materials have elicited considerable attention in the field of electrocatalytic water splitting. In this paper, we highlighted recent progress in regulation strategies for Re-based electrocatalysts to provide references for the study of Re-based electrocatalytic materials. First, we introduce the basic mechanism of the Re-based electrocatalytic process. Then, we provide an in-depth discussion of the regulatory strategies used to enhance the catalytic activity of Re-based electrocatalysts, including edge site, defect/vacancy engineering, interface engineering, and phase engineering strategies. We also summarize current challenges in Re-based electrocatalysts and present possible prospects for the design of highly efficient Re-based electrocatalysts in the future.