Electrodeposition of self–supported Ni–Mg–La electrocatalyst on Ni foam for efficient hydrogen evolution reaction

Abstract

Electrocatalysts with superior catalytic activity and low cost are essential to the hydrogen production industry. In this work, a facile and efficient strategy was reported to prepare a self-supported nickel–magnesium–lanthanum (Ni–Mg–La) electrocatalyst for highly efficient hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in alkaline solution. The electrocatalytic performance and stability of the prepared electrodes were evaluated through electrochemical linear sweep voltammetry, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and chronopotentiometry. The Ni–Mg–La electrodes exhibit excellent electrocatalytic activity with a low overpotential of 70 mV to deliver the current density of 10 mA•cm−2. The Ni–Mg–La electrocatalyst shows better intrinsic activity toward HER than that of Ni–Mg catalyst by comparing the turnover frequency and electrochemical active surface area values. The superior property of Ni–Mg–La electrocatalyst can be attributed to the high surface area, high conductivity, and outstanding stability due to the self–supported structure.