Enhanced hydrogen evolution in alkaline media by electrodeposition of floral spherical Ni–Se–Yb/NF electrocatalyst

•Ni–Se–Yb/NF electrocatalyst is developed via a facile and simple potentiostatic electrodeposition method.•Ni–Se–Yb/NF electrocatalyst showed excellent HER activity with 50 mV at 10 mA·cm−2.•The nucleation of Ni–Se–Yb/NF follows a three-dimensional instantaneous nucleation mechanism. Developing novel, cost-effective, and high-performance electrocatalysts is crucial to advancing the practical application of water electrolysis. Rare-earth (RE) elements have emerged as the research focus for modifying metal catalysts owing to their distinctive electronic structure. In this study, a Ni–Se–Yb/NF electrode was synthesized on the nickel foam (NF) substrate through potentiostatic electrodeposition. Results indicated that the nucleation of the Ni–Se–Yb electrode followed a three-dimensional instantaneous nucleation mechanism. The addition of Yb regulated the surface morphology and enhanced the intrinsic properties of the catalyst material by rapidly achieving the Volmer desorption step of hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), thereby improving the catalytic performance of HER. The Ni–Se–Yb/NF electrocatalyst achieved a current density of 10 mA·cm−2 with merely 50 mV overpotential. The Ni–Se–Yb/NF catalyst also exhibited excellent electrochemical stability after 72 h of long-term durability measurement.