Polypyrrole supported Co–W–B nanoparticles as an efficient catalyst for improved hydrogen generation from hydrolysis of sodium borohydride

Abstract

Effective and reusable catalysts with high performance are essentially necessary for NaBH 4 based on-demand hydrogen generators to the widespread use for energy conversion in fuel cell power systems. Herein, we report a facile synthesis of surfactant-directed polypyrrole-supported Co–W–B nanoparticles as a robust catalyst for efficient hydrolysis of NaBH 4 reaction. This non-noble metal catalyst provides much higher catalytic activity than a conventional cobalt boride catalyst. By incorporating tungsten to catalyst composition and tuning molar ratio of W/(Co + W), about a four-fold higher hydrogen generation rate was attained compared to bare Co–B. Among the all catalysts tested, Co–W–B/PPy with 7.5% W possessed the remarkable catalytic performance of 9.92 L min −1 g −1 and high stability over five cycles with the apparent activation energy of 49.18 kJ mol −1 . • Polypyrrole supported Co–W–B catalyst was prepared by reduction - precipitation route. • Hydrogen generation rate was highly improved by adding tungsten to the catalyst composition. • The catalyst with optimized composition showed the hydrogen generation rate of 9.92 L min −1 g −1 . • The catalyst was retained durability after five cycles.