Electrodeposited Ni foam electrodes for increased hydrogen production in alkaline electrolysis

Abstract

Nickel foam electrodes were treated with a facile and cost-effective electrodeposition method to increase the hydrogen production efficiency in alkaline electrolysis setups. The treated electrodes (Electrodeposited Nickel Foam – ENF) exhibit enhanced electrochemical values compared to a bare nickel foam electrode (NF). A comprehensive analysis is presented on how the electrodeposition time determines the kinetics of hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and the electrochemical values of the ENF electrodes. It was revealed that deposition time plays a decisive role in the total hydrogen production efficiency. In particular, the ENF electrode with 10 min of electrodeposition, presents a lower Tafel slope, lower overpotentials (|η10|=135 mV, |η100| = 230 mV), and enhanced hydrogen production (1.5 times higher) compared to an NF electrode. The improved characteristics are mainly attributed to the increased electrochemically active area (6.5 times higher than the NF electrode). Field emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were used for the structural and morphological analysis of the electrodeposited nickel foam electrodes.