Lattice distortion in hybrid NiTe2/Ni(OH)2 nanosheets as efficient synergistic electrocatalyst for water and urea oxidation

Abstract

Designing highly active electrocatalysts based on earth-abundant metals is attracting great interest for the development of renewable energies. In this work, NiTe2/Ni(OH)2 hybrid nanosheet is successfully fabricated on carbon fiber cloth by a successive hydrothermal reaction for the first time, showing excellent catalytic performance for both electrochemical water oxidation and urea oxidation reaction. Benefiting from the unique electron property of NiTe2 and strong synergistic interaction between NiTe2 and Ni(OH)2, the as-obtained hybrid catalyst only need an overpotential of 267 mV to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm−2 in 1.0 M KOH, and achieve 73 mA/cm2 at 1.523 V in 1.0 M KOH with 0.33 M urea. The innovation of this work is the incorporation of NiTe2 and Ni(OH)2 to boost its catalytic ability. This novel method is expected to provide new chance for developing efficient catalysts for energy conversion application.