NixCo3‐xO4 Nanoneedle Arrays Grown on Ni Foam as an Efficient Bifunctional Electrocatalyst for Full Water Splitting

Developing highly active, stable and robust electrocatalysts based on earth‐abundant elements for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is important for many renewable energy conversion processes. Herein, Ni_xCo_3‐xO₄ nanoneedle arrays grown on 3D porous nickel foam (NF) was synthesized as a bifunctional electrocatalyst with OER and HER activity for full water splitting. Benefiting from the advantageous structure, the composite exhibits superior OER activity with an overpotential of 320 mV achieving the current density of 10 mA cm^?2. An exceptional HER activity is also acquired with an overpotential of 170 mV at the current density of 10 mA cm^?2. Furthermore, the catalyst also shows the superior activity and stability for 20 h when used in the overall water splitting cell. Thus, the hierarchical 3D structure composed of the 1D nanoneedle structure in Ni_xCo_3‐xO₄/NF represents an avenue to design and develop highly active and bifunctional electrocatalysts for promising energy conversion.     

Bimetallic cobalt-nickel coordination polymer electrocatalysts for enhancing oxygen evolution reaction

Coordination polymers（CPs） have great potential to be used in electrocatalysis owing to their designable compositions and structures. It is highly challenging to apply CPs as electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction（OER） on account of insufficient catalytic efficiency and relatively poor stability of current electrocatalysts. Herein, through a mixed-metal strategy, one-dimensional Co_xNi_1-x-HIPA with dual active sites was synthesized and studied for OER electrocatalyst...     

Synchronous Electrocatalytic Design of Architectural and Electronic Structure Based on Bifunctional LDH-Co3O4/NF toward Water Splitting

The rational design of highly efficient bifunctional electrocatalysts for water splitting is extremely urgent for application in sustainable energy conversion processes to alleviate the energy crisis and environmental pollution. In this work, through simple deposition of layered double hydroxides (LDH) on Co₃O₄/NF (NF=nickel foam) nanosheets arrays, hierarchical Co³⁺-rich materials based on LDH-Co₃O₄/NF are prepared as highly active and stable electrocatalysts for water splitting. The NiFe-LDH-Co₃O₄/NF demonstrates excellent electrochemical activity with an overpotential of 214 mV for the OER and an overpotential of 162 mV for the HER at 10 mA cm⁻². Such a performance is attributed to the optimized electronic states with a high concentration of Co³⁺, which improves the intrinsic activity, and the sheet-on-sheet hierarchical structure, which increases the number of active sites. The unique synchronous design of both the architectural and electronic structure of nanomaterials can simultaneously accelerate the reaction kinetics and provide a more convenient charge transfer path. Therefore, the strategy reported herein may open a new pathway for the design of excellent electrocatalysts for water splitting.     

Electrodeposition of Defect-Rich Ternary NiCoFe Layered Double Hydroxides: Fine Modulation of Co3+ for Highly Efficient Oxygen Evolution Reaction

The low-cost, high-abundance and durable layered double hydroxides (LDHs) have been considered as promising electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER). However, the easy agglomeration of lamellar LDHs in the aqueous phase limits their practical applications. Herein, a series of ternary NiCoFe LDHs were successfully fabricated on nickel foam (NF) via a simple electrodeposition method. The as-prepared Ni(Co_0.5Fe_0.5)/NF displayed an unique nanoarray structural feature. It showed an OER overpotential of 209 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm⁻² in alkaline solution, which was superior to most systems reported so far. As evidenced by the XPS and XAFS results, such excellent performance of Ni(Co_0.5Fe_0.5)/NF was attributed to the higher Co³⁺/Co²⁺ ratio and more defects exposed, comparing with Ni(Co_0.5Fe_0.5)-bulk and Ni(Co_0.5Fe_0.5)-mono LDHs prepared by conventional coprecipitation method. Furthermore, the ratio of Co to Fe could significantly tune the Co electronic structure of Ni(Co_xFe_1-x)/NF composites (x=0.25, 0.50 and 0.75) and affect the electrocatalytic activity for OER, in which Ni(Co_0.5Fe_0.5)/NF showed the lowest energy barrier for OER rate-determining step (from O* to OOH*). This work proposes a facile method to develop high-efficiency OER electrocatalysts.     

Double Perovskite LaFexNi1−xO3 Nanorods Enable Efficient Oxygen Evolution Electrocatalysis

Perovskite‐based electrocatalysts are one of the most promising materials for oxygen evolution reaction (OER), but their activity and durability are still far from desirable. Herein, we demonstrate that the double perovskite LaFe_xNi_1?xO₃ (LFNO) nanorods (NRs) can be adopted as highly active and stable OER electrocatalysts. The optimized LFNO‐II NRs with Ni/Fe ratio of 8:2 achieve a low overpotential of 302 mV at 10 mA cm^?2 and a small Tafel slope of 50 mV dec^?1, outperforming those of the commercial Ir/C. The LFNO‐II NRs also show high OER stability with slight current decrease after 20 h. The enhanced activity is explained by the improved surface area, tailored electronic structure as well as strong hybridization between O and Ni.     

Heat-induced changes in microstructure and magnetic properties of Co0.75Ni0.75[Fe(CN)6] · XH2O

Polycrystalline Co_0.75Ni_0.75[Fe(CN)₆]?·?XH₂O was prepared by coprecipitation. The coprecipitated powder was annealed in vacuum at 80°C, 100°C, and 130°C. Variation of microstructural and magnetic properties with different annealed temperatures was studied by Fourier-transform infrared, X-ray diffraction, and magnetization measurements. The differences in magnetic phase transition temperature, coercivity, remanence, and effective magnetization were studied in detail. The magnetic contribution mainly results from Fe^III–CN–Co^II/Ni^II and Fe^III–NC–Co^II/Ni^II because Fe^II–CN–Co^III/Ni^II carries no net spin. After annealing at 130°C, the microstructures Fe^III–CN–Co^II/Ni^II and Fe^III–NC–Co^II/Ni^II convert to Fe^II–CN–Co^III/Ni^II. Differences in magnetic properties may be attributed to heat-induced microstructural changes.     

Iron-Doped Nickel Molybdate with Enhanced Oxygen Evolution Kinetics

Electrochemical water splitting is one of the potential approaches for making renewable energy production and storage viable. The oxygen evolution reaction (OER), as a sluggish four-electron electrochemical reaction, has to overcome high overpotential to accomplish overall water splitting. Therefore, developing low-cost and highly active OER catalysts is the key for achieving efficient and economical water electrolysis. In this work, Fe-doped NiMoO₄ was synthesized and evaluated as the OER catalyst in alkaline medium. Fe³⁺ doping helps to regulate the electronic structure of Ni centers in NiMoO₄, which consequently promotes the catalytic activity of NiMoO₄. The overpotential to reach a current density of 10 mA cm⁻² is 299 mV in 1 m KOH for the optimal Ni_0.9Fe_0.1MoO₄, which is 65 mV lower than that for NiMoO₄. Further, the catalyst also shows exceptional performance stability during a 2 h chronopotentiometry testing. Moreover, the real catalytically active center of Ni_0.9Fe_0.1MoO₄ is also unraveled based on the ex situ characterizations. These results provide new alternatives for precious-metal-free catalysts for alkaline OER and also expand the Fe-doping-induced synergistic effect towards performance enhancement to new catalyst systems.     

泡沫镍负载Fe2O3@Ni3S2纳米线网状结构电极的制备及其电催化析氧性能

通过两步水热法制备泡沫镍(NF)负载Fe_2O_3纳米粒子@Ni_3S_2纳米线网状结构电极(Fe_2O_3@Ni_3S_2/NF)。运用X射线衍射(XRD)、X射线光电子能谱(XPS)、透射电子显微镜(TEM)、N_2吸附-脱附测试等方法对电极材料的物相和微观结构特征等进行了表征。水热条件下原位表面化学刻蚀生成的Ni_3S_2纳米线与三维多孔NF基体间拥有强结合力和低界面电阻,Fe_2O_3粒子均匀分布在纳米线的表面。在1 mol·L~(-1)的KOH溶液中,运用线性扫描伏安测试(LSV)、计时电位法、电化学交流阻抗测试(EIS)等对电极的电催化析氧(OER)性能进行了测试。结果表明:在100 mA·cm~(-2)的超高电流密度下,Fe_2O_3@Ni_3S_2/NF电极的OER过电势仅为223 mV,比Ni_3S_2/NF材料的过电势降低了285 mV;经过10 h计时电位测试,性能保持率高达80%。     

Improving the Electrocatalytic Activity of a Nickel-Organic Framework toward the Oxygen Evolution Reaction through Vanadium Doping

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have been considered as potential oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts owning to their ultra-thin structure, adjustable composition, high surface area, and high porosity. Here, we designed and fabricated a vanadium-doped nickel organic framework (V_1−x−Ni_xMOF) system by using a facile two-step solvothermal method on nickel foam (NF). The doping of vanadium remarkably elevates the OER activity of V_1−x−Ni_xMOF, thus demonstrating better performance than the corresponding single metallic Ni-MOF, NiV-MOF and RuO₂ catalysts at high current density (>400 mA cm⁻²). V_0.09−Ni_0.91MOF/NF provides a low overpotential of 235 mV and a small Tafel slope of 30.3 mV dec⁻¹ at a current density of 10 mA cm⁻². More importantly, a water-splitting device assembled with Pt/C/NF and V_0.09−Ni_0.91MOF/NF as cathode and anode yielded a cell voltage of 1.96 V@1000 mA cm⁻², thereby outperforming the-state-of-the-art RuO₂⁽⁺⁾||Pt/C⁽⁻⁾. Our work sheds new insight on preparing stable, efficient OER electrocatalysts and a promising method for designing various MOF-based materials.     

Impact of Surface Defects on LaNiO3 Perovskite Electrocatalysts for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction

Perovskite oxides are regarded as promising electrocatalysts for water splitting due to their cost-effectiveness, high efficiency and durability in the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Despite these advantages, a fundamental understanding of how critical structural parameters of perovskite electrocatalysts influence their activity and stability is lacking. Here, we investigate the impact of structural defects on OER performance for representative LaNiO₃ perovskite electrocatalysts. Hydrogen reduction of 700 °C calcined LaNiO₃ induces a high density of surface oxygen vacancies, and confers significantly enhanced OER activity and stability compared to unreduced LaNiO₃; the former exhibit a low onset overpotential of 380 mV at 10 mA cm⁻² and a small Tafel slope of 70.8 mV dec⁻¹. Oxygen vacancy formation is accompanied by mixed Ni²⁺/Ni³⁺ valence states, which quantum-chemical DFT calculations reveal modify the perovskite electronic structure. Further, it reveals that the formation of oxygen vacancies is thermodynamically more favourable on the surface than in the bulk; it increases the electronic conductivity of reduced LaNiO₃ in accordance with the enhanced OER activity that is observed.     

In Situ Electrochemical Conversion of an Ultrathin Tannin Nickel Iron Complex Film as an Efficient Oxygen Evolution Reaction Electrocatalyst

The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is an important half reaction in many energy conversion and storage techniques. However, the development of a low‐cost easy‐prepared OER electrocatalyst with high mass activity and rapid kinetics is still challenging. Herein, we report the facile deposition of tannin‐NiFe (TANF) complex film on carbon fiber paper (CP) as a highly efficient OER electrocatalyst. TANF gives rapid OER reaction kinetics with a very small Tafel slope of 28 mV dec^?1. The mass activity of TANF reaches 9.17×10³ Ag^?1 at an overpotential of 300 mV, which is nearly 200‐times larger than that of NiFe double layered hydroxide. Furthermore, tannic acid in TANF can be electrochemically extracted under anodic potential, leaving the inorganic composite Ni_xFe_1?xO_yH_z as the OER‐active species. This work may provide a guide to probing the electrochemical transformation and investigating the reactive species of other metal–organic complexes as heterogeneous electrocatalysts.     

简易电沉积法制备CoFe-P催化剂用于高效析氧反应

开发低成本、高活性且稳定的非贵金属催化剂是实现大规模电解水制氢的关键所在。在此,我们通过简便、合理的电沉积法在泡沫镍(NF)上构建了一种具备超薄二维纳米片形貌的高度非晶相Co1Fe1-P薄膜用于高效催化析氧反应(OER)。在1.0mol·L^-1 KOH溶液中,所制备的Co1Fe1-P/NF催化剂在电流密度为10和100 mA·cm^-2处的过电位分别为274.4和329.5 mV,Tafel斜率仅为 45.3 mV·dec^-1,可以媲美商业 RuO₂催化剂。此外,Co1Fe1-P/NF 催化剂在 10 mA·cm^-2的 100 h 计时电压法测试和1 000次循环伏安法测试中均表现出卓越的催化稳定性。Co1Fe1-P/NF催化剂优秀的催化活性归因于其独特的形貌、高度非晶相结构提供的低能垒、优化的电子结构以及钴磷化物和铁磷化物的强协同效应。     

简易电沉积法制备CoFe-P催化剂用于高效析氧反应

开发低成本、高活性且稳定的非贵金属催化剂是实现大规模电解水制氢的关键所在。在此,我们通过简便、合理的电沉积法在泡沫镍(NF)上构建了一种具备超薄二维纳米片形貌的高度非晶相Co1Fe1-P薄膜用于高效催化析氧反应（OER）。在1.0mol·L^-1 KOH溶液中,所制备的Co1Fe1-P/NF催化剂在电流密度为10和100 mA·cm^-2处的过电位分别为274.4和329.5 mV,Tafel斜率仅为45.3 mV·dec^-1,可以媲美商业RuO₂催化剂。此外,Co1Fe1-P/NF催化剂在10 mA·cm^-2的100 h计时电压法测试和1 000次循环伏安法测试中均表现出卓越的催化稳定性。Co1Fe1-P/NF催化剂优秀的催化活性归因于其独特的形貌、高度非晶相结构提供的低能垒、优化的电子结构以及钴磷化物和铁磷化物的强协同效应。     

Preferential Co substitution on Ni sites in Ni–Fe oxide arrays enabling large-current-density alkaline oxygen evolution

Developing low-cost and high-activity transition metal oxide electrocatalysts for an efficient oxygen evolution reaction (OER) at a large current density is highly demanded for industrial application and remains a big challenge. Herein, we report vertically aligned cobalt doped Ni–Fe based oxide (Co–NiO/Fe₂O₃) arrays as a robust OER electrocatalyst via a simple method combining hydrothermal reaction with heat treatment. Density functional theory calculation and XRD Rietveld refinement reveal that Co preferentially occupies the Ni sites compared to Fe in the Ni–Fe based oxides. The electronic structures of the Co–NiO/Fe₂O₃ could be further optimized, leading to the improvement of the intrinsic electronic conductivity and d-band center energy level and the decrease in the reaction energy barrier of the rate-determining step for the OER, thus accelerating its OER electrocatalytic activity. The Co–NiO/Fe₂O₃ nanosheet arrays display state-of-the-art OER activities at a large current density for industrial demands among Fe–Co–Ni based oxide electrocatalysts, which only require an ultra-low overpotential of 230 mV at a high current density of 500 mA cm⁻², and exhibit superb durability at 500 mA cm⁻² for at least 300 h without obvious degradation. The Co–NiO/Fe₂O₃ nanosheet arrays also have a small Tafel slope of 33.9 mV dec⁻¹, demonstrating fast reaction kinetics. This work affords a simple and effective method to design and construct transition metal oxide based electrocatalysts for efficient water oxidation.

Co–NiO/Fe₂O₃ nanosheets featuring Co substitution on Ni sites can effectively regulate electronic structures and exhibit high OER activities with low overpotential (η₅₀₀ = 230 mV), small Tafel slope (33.9 mV dec⁻¹) and superb durability for 300 h.     

In-Situ Generated Trimetallic Molybdate Nanoflowers on Ni Foam Assisted with Microwave for Highly Enhanced Oxygen Evolution Reaction

Oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is considered as a critical half-cell reaction of water splitting, the kinetics of which is sluggish even not favored, thus requiring highly active electrocatalysts to shrink the reaction energy barrier and improve the energy conversion efficiency. In this study, In-situ generated trimetallic molybdate nanoflowers on Ni foam by a straightforward and time-saving solvothermal method assisted with microwave, not only bring synergistic effect into full play between multiple metals, but also construct a well-defined nanoflower-like structure accompanied by larger specific area (273.3 m² g⁻¹) and smaller size than the pristine NiMoO₄. The resulting Ni_0.9Al_0.1MoO₄-NF requires a relatively low overpotential of 266 mV for OER at 10 mA cm⁻², which outperforms commercial RuO₂ catalysts (274 mV). Such excellent performance compares favorably to most previously reported NiMoO₄-based electrocatalysts for OER. This work not only supplies a facile method to construct a well-defined nanoflower-like structure on foam, but also broadens our horizons into the mechanism of OER in alkaline conditions.     

One step synthesis of Fe4.4Ni17.6Se16 coupled NiSe foam as self-supported,highly efficient and durable oxygen evolution electrode

The development of cost-effective, durable and high-efficient oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts is an extremely critical technology for the large-scale industrial water electrolysis. Here, a new strategy is proposed to significantly enhance the electrocatalytic activity by forming a hybrid electrode of NiSe and Fe_4.4Ni_17.6Se₁₆ through direct selenization of porous iron-nickel (FeNi) alloy foam via thermal selenization process. The obtained self-supported Fe_4.4Ni_17.6Se₁₆/NiSe hybrid (FNS/NiSe) foam displays outstanding durability and remarkable catalytic activity in 1.0 M KOH with low overpotentials of 242 and 282 mV to achieve the current densities of 100 and 500 mA cm^?2, respectively. To the best of our knowledge, it exceeds most of the reported OER electrocatalysts in alkaline electrolytes.     

Fe2O3‐N‐doped Honeycomb‐like Porous Carbon Derived from Nature Silk Sericin as Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Evolution Reaction

A facile method is reported to form a honeycomb‐like porous nanomaterial by intercalation of iron nitrate using nature silk sericin (SS) as nitrogen and carbon source. A series of Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles anchored on Fe₂O₃‐N‐doped graphite carbon electrocatalysts (SS‐Fe) were synthesized, exhibits well‐defined pore structure and excellent oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalytic activities. Among these materials, SS‐Fe‐0.5 shows the best performance, the overpotential of SS‐Fe‐0.5 at 10 mA · cm^–2 is 440 mV (vs. RHE) and the Tafel slope is only 68 mV · dec^–1. The results indicate that it is promising to the preparation of carbon catalyst materials using natural, renewable and abundant resources for electrocatalysis.     

Metallic Co4N Porous Nanowire Arrays Activated by Surface Oxidation as Electrocatalysts for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction

Designing highly efficient electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) plays a key role in the development of various renewable energy storage and conversion devices. In this work, we developed metallic Co₄N porous nanowire arrays directly grown on flexible substrates as highly active OER electrocatalysts for the first time. Benefiting from the collaborative advantages of metallic character, 1D porous nanowire arrays, and unique 3D electrode configuration, surface oxidation activated Co₄N porous nanowire arrays/carbon cloth achieved an extremely small overpotential of 257 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm⁻², and a low Tafel slope of 44 mV dec⁻¹ in an alkaline medium, which is the best OER performance among reported Co‐based electrocatalysts to date. Moreover, in‐depth mechanistic investigations demonstrate the active phases are the metallic Co₄N core inside with a thin cobalt oxides/hydroxides shell during the OER process. Our finding introduces a new concept to explore the design of high‐efficiency OER electrocatalysts.     

Heterogeneous Cu1.92S@Cu3P/Ni2P Nanospheres on Nickel Foam for Effective Electrocatalytic Oxygen Evolution Reaction**

The design and exploration of highly efficient and economical electrocatalysts for large-scale hydrogen generation from electrochemical water splitting is of great importance towards hydrogen economy. Herein, we have synthesized heterogeneous Cu_1.92S@Cu₃P/Ni₂P nanospheres on nickel foam, which exhibits excellent OER activity in alkaline solution. When used as an anode, the overpotential of Cu_1.92S@Cu₃P/Ni₂P at the current density of 10 mA cm⁻² is only 211 mV, with a good stability (24 h). The heterogeneous Cu_1.92S@Cu₃P/Ni₂P nanospheres has synergistic modulation of electronic structure, abundant active sites and fast electron transfer rate, which contributes to its high OER activity.     

On the nature of the chemical bond in heterobimetallic palladium(II) complexes with divalent 3<Emphasis Type="Italic">d</Emphasis> metals

The complex Pd(μ-OOCMe)₄Cu(OH₂) · 2Pd₃(μ-OOCMe)₆ was synthesized and characterized by X-ray crystallography. In the heterometallic moiety of this complex, the Pd^II and Cu^II atoms are at an extraordinary short distance (2.521(3) Å). DFT quantum-chemical calculations of the geometric and electronic structure of a series of heterobinuclear paddlewheel complexes Pd^IIM^II(μ-OOCMe)₄L (M = Zn^II, Ni^II, Cu^II, Co^II, Fe^II; L = OH₂ and NCH) and their formate analogues Pd^IIM^II(μ-OOCH)₄L (M = Zn^II, Ni^II, Fe^II) showed that the extraordinary short Pd?M distance in all these complexes is caused only by the tightening effect of carboxylate bridges rather than by the metal-metal bond. The direct Pd-M interaction becomes possible only after removal of electrons from the antibonding orbitals and formation of oxidized complexes of the [Pd^III(μ-OOCMe)₄Ni^III]²⁺ type.