Nanostructured NiMoO4 as active electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution

It is desirable to exploit cost-effective and earth-abundant catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in developing electrochemical energy conversion and storage technologies. Here we report a facile hydrothermal synthesis of NiMoO₄ nanorods as active and stable OER catalyst in alkaline condition. The prepared NiMoO₄ nanorods exhibit a considerably low overpotential of 340 mV at the current density of 10 mA/cm² and a low Tafel slope of 45.6 mV/dec, which is comparable to the benchmark RuO₂. Furthermore, the performance of NiMoO₄ significantly surpasses binary NiO and MoO₃ oxides due to enhanced charge transfer and promoted formation of catalytically active Ni³⁺ species. The results highlight the importance of designing ternary oxides in oxygen electrocatalysis.