Durable and high performing Ti supported Ni0.4Cu0.6Co2O4 nanoleaf-like array catalysts for hydrogen production

Abstract

The development of cost-effective, robust, and highly stable catalysts for the production of hydrogen via hydrolysis of ammonia borane (AB) is an important research topic but still a big challenge in the fields of hydrogen energy and material chemistry. In this work, Ni0.4Cu0.6Co2O4 nanoarrays composed of leaf-like nanosheets anchored on Ti film were fabricated via a simple hydrothermal method followed by calcination. The Ni0.4Cu0.6Co2O4 nanoleaf-like array exhibits robust catalytic performance in AB hydrolysis with turnover frequency of 60.3 min−1, which is much higher than those of Ni0.4Cu0.6Co2O4 film composed of spherical nanoparticles and unsupported Ni0.4Cu0.6Co2O4 nanoparticles. This value is even higher than those of some noble metal-containing catalysts. The improved catalytic activity is attributed to both the “shape effect” of nanocatalysts and the virtues of nanostructured film catalysts. More importantly, the nanoleaf-like array exhibits good stability without pronounced activity loss after seven catalytic cycles. Possessing high activity and stability, as well as low cost, our Ni0.4Cu0.6Co2O4 nanoleaf-like array can be a promising substitute for precious metal-based catalysts for hydrogen production.