text: Electrocatalysis can occur at the surface of some bulk materials, such as platinum metal. Bulk metal surfaces of gold have been employed for the decomposition methanol for hydrogen production. Water electrolysis is conventionally conducted at inert bulk metal electrodes such as platinum or iridium. The activity of an electrocatalyst can be tuned with a chemical modification, commonly obtained by alloying two or more metals. This is due to a change in the electronic structure, especially in the d band which is considered to be responsible for the catalytic properties of noble metals.