Abstract
Electrocatalytic oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is one of the crucial reactions for converting renewable electricity into chemical fuel in the form of hydrogen. To date, there is still a challenge in designing ideal cost-effective OER catalysts with excellent activity and robust durability. The hybridization of transition metal oxides and carbonaceous materials is one of the most effective and promising strategies to develop high-performance electrocatalysts. Herein, this work synthesized hybrids of NiFe2O4 spinel materials with two-dimensional (2D) graphene oxide and one-dimensional (1D) carbon nanotubes using a facile solvothermal approach. Electrocatalytic activities of NiFe2O4 with 2D graphene oxide toward OER were realized to be superior even to the 1D carbon nanotube-based electrocatalyst in terms of overpotential to reach a current density of 10 mA/cm2 as well as Tafel slopes. The NiFe2O4 with 2D graphene oxide hybrid exhibits good stability with an overpotential of 327 mV at a current density of 10 mA/cm2 and a Tafel slope of 103 mV/dec. The high performance of NiFe2O4 with 2D graphene oxide is mainly attributed to its unique morphology, more exposed active sites, and a porous structure with a high surface area. Thus, an approach of hybridizing a metal oxide with a carbonaceous material offers an attractive platform for developing an efficient electrocatalyst for water electrochemistry applications.
Highlights
The energy demand of the world is increasing rapidly, and fossil fuels are insufficient to fulfill the future demand
Water splitting is an emerging technology in hydrogen production; it suffers from intrinsically sluggish kinetics in oxygen evolution reaction (OER), resulting in the need for a higher
The chemical exfoliation of graphene oxide (GO) and functionalization of the carbon nanotubes (CNTs) generate a large number of oxygen-containing groups on the surface
Summary
The energy demand of the world is increasing rapidly, and fossil fuels are insufficient to fulfill the future demand. Their extensive use leaves a harsh impact on the environment and health of other living things. One of the promising methods for energy conversion is the electrochemical water-splitting reaction that includes two half-reactions, namely hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) on the cathode and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) on the anode [3]. This advantageous method is owed to its high efficiency, nontoxicity, and environmental friendliness. Water splitting is an emerging technology in hydrogen production; it suffers from intrinsically sluggish kinetics in OER, resulting in the need for a higher
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