Nickel Sulfide Research Articles

Electrodeposited Nickel Sulfide Nanoparticles Incorporated Carbon Nanofibers as Effective Non‐Precious Catalyst for Methanol Electrooxidation in Alkaline Medium

AbstractFor direct methanol fuel cells, developing low‐cost, highly efficient, and long‐term stable electrocatalysts is crucial. In this work, we report easy and single‐step electrodeposition of nickel sulfide thin film incorporating carbon nanofibers on indium tin oxide (denoted as Ni4S3‐CNF/ITO). The electrodeposited materials were characterized by X‐ray Diffraction, Scanning Electron Microscopy, and Energy Dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy. The electrocatalytic activity toward Methanol Oxidation Reaction (MOR) was investigated using Cyclic Voltammetry, Chrono‐Amperometry, and Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy. The electrocatalyst exhibited good electrocatalytic activity regarding methanol electrooxidation in an alkaline medium with retention of its activity over a significant period of time. These results indicate that the incorporation of carbon nanofibers into nickel sulfide allows the electrocatalyst to gain higher surface area and high tolerance to the catalyst‐poising species generated during MOR. The electrocatalytic activity of electrodeposited Ni4S3‐CNF/ITO makes it a promising electrocatalyst for low‐cost, high‐efficient fuel cells.

NiS Nanosheets Decorated on Hollow Carbon Spheres from Liquefied Wood for Supercapacitors

Carbon-based supercapacitors with high performance have a wide foreground among various energy storage devices. In this work, wood-based hollow carbon spheres (WHCS) were prepared from liquefied wood through the processes of emulsification, curing, carbonization, and activation. Then, the hydrodeposition method was used to introduce nickel sulfide (NiS) to the surface of the microspheres, obtaining NiS/WHCS as the supercapacitor electrode. The results show that NiS/WHCS microspheres exhibited a core-shell structure and flower-like morphology with a specific surface (307.55 m2 g-1) and a large total pore volume (0.14 cm3 g-1). Also, the capacitance could be up to 1533.6 F g-1 at a current density of 1 A g-1. In addition, after 1000 charge/discharge cycles, the specific capacitance remained at 72.8% at the initial current density of 5 A g-1. Hence, NiS/WHCS with excellent durability and high specific capacitance is a potential candidate for electrode materials.

Engineering sulfur vacancies on Mo-doped nickel sulfide for enhanced electrochemical energy storage

Engineering sulfur vacancies on Mo-doped nickel sulfide for enhanced electrochemical energy storage

A facile strategy for the synthesis of manganese-doped nickel sulfide nanosheets and oxygen, nitrogen-enriched 3D-graphene-like porous carbon for hybrid supercapacitor

A facile strategy for the synthesis of manganese-doped nickel sulfide nanosheets and oxygen, nitrogen-enriched 3D-graphene-like porous carbon for hybrid supercapacitor

Automated mineralogy using optical microscopy in a geometallurgical context: A comparative study on Dumont nickel project ores, Amos, Quebec

The Dumont Nickel Project is a low-grade, large-tonnage, ultramafic-hosted, disseminated nickel mine development project located in the Abitibi region of Quebec. The nickel mineralization is a result of the serpentinization of a dunite protolith that contained magmatic nickel sulfides (pentlandite ((Ni, Fe)9S8), heazlewoodite (Ni3S2)) with concurrent generation of nickel–iron alloy (awaruite (Ni2.5Fe)) considered as metallurgically recoverable Ni in the resource.The challenge in developing Dumont-type deposits lies in the mapping of recoverable Ni-phases through a geometallurgical approach. To quantify recoverable Ni, it is desirable to develop an affordable and cost-effective mineralogical quantification method for recoverable minerals to assess the economic value of mineralization.This study proposes an innovative way to quantify relevant mineralogy for future mining operations at the Dumont Nickel project using automated optical microscopy based on image analysis and quantification. To reach this goal, four samples that represent the geometallurgical domains of the deposit were characterized by automated optical microscopy and these results were compared to existing mineralogical quantification data for the same samples acquired by Quantitative Evaluation of Minerals by SCANning electron microscope (QEMSCAN®). The mineral abundance results obtained with the two techniques were compared with a focus on Ni deportment within opaque minerals. This comparative study has proven the effectiveness of automated optical microscopy for mineralogical quantification purposes as applied to the Dumont Nickel Project samples studied.

Metal−Organic Precursors for Transition‐Metal‐Doped Ni2P via Pyrolysis for Efficient Overall Water Splitting and Supercapacitance

AbstractThe synthesis of solvent‐less bare‐surface nickel phosphides is desired, considering their superior electrocatalytic properties and straightforward synthetic protocols compared to their analogues prepared from colloidal routes. Herein, we report the synthesis of [Ni{S2P(OH)(4‐CH3OC6H4)}2] (1), [Fe{S2P(OH)(4‐CH3OC6H4)}3] (2) and [Co{S2P(OC4H9)(4‐CH3OC6H4)}3] (3) and their utilization to form Ni2P, Fe‐Ni2P and Co‐Ni2P in a solvent‐less pyrolysis method. This solvent‐free protocol involved the decomposition of complex (1) and the composites of complex (1) with (2) or (3) in the presence of triphenylphosphine (TPP) at 400 °C for one hour. The solvent‐less decomposition of complex (1) without TPP formed nickel sulfide. A plausible explanation for this rare fabrication of pristine and doped Ni2P in the absence of any solvent is suggested. All the transition metal doped phosphides improved the HER performance of pristine Ni2P, with the 5 % Fe doped Ni2P having the best performance, requiring 137 mV to reach a current density of 10 mA/cm2. Similarly, the OER performance of un‐doped Ni2P was improved by all the doped Ni2P catalysts, where 10 % Fe‐doped Ni2P showed the best performance requiring 326 mV to reach a current density of 10 mA/cm2. Transition metal doping was also shown to improve the reaction kinetics, stability and durability of the solvent‐free prepared Ni2P.

Recent advances in synthesis, structural properties, and regulation of nickel sulfide-based heterostructures for environmental water remediation: an insight review.

Heterostructured nanomaterials exhibit pronounced potential in environmental science, including the water purification, pollutant monitoring, and environmental remediation. Especially, their application through advanced oxidation processes has been found capable and adaptable in waste water treatment. In semiconductor photocatalysts, metal sulfides are the leading materials. However, for further modifications, the progresses on specific materials need to be overviewed. Among metal sulfides, nickel sulfides are the emerging semiconductors due to relatively narrow band gaps, high thermal and chemical stability, and cost effectiveness. The aim of the present review is to conduct a thorough analysis and summary of recent progress in the application of nickel sulfide-based heterostructures in water decontamination. Initially, the review introduces the emerging needs of the materials for environment following the characteristics features of metal sulfides with emphasis on nickel sulfides. Subsequently, synthesis strategies and structural properties of nickel sulfide (NiS and NiS2)-based photocatalysts are discussed. Herein, controlled synthesis procedures to influence their active structure, compositions, shape, and size for the enhanced photocatalytic performances are also considered. Furthermore, there is discussion on heterostructures formed by metal modification, metal oxides, and carbon hybridized nanocomposites. In the continuation, the modified characteristics are investigated which favors the photocatalytic processes for degradation of organic contaminations in water. The overall study highlights significant improvements in degradation efficiency of hetero-interfaced NiS and NiS2 photocatalysts towards organics that are comparable to expensive noble-metal photocatalysts. Finally, we also added a little on prospects for future advancement of nickel sulfide-based photocatalysts for applications in sustainable environmental remediation.

Tubular NiCo2S4 hierarchical architectures as sulfur hosts for advanced rechargeable lithium sulfur batteries

Tubular nickel and cobalt bimetal sulfides NiCo2S4 hierarchical architectures were fabricated by a facile solvothermal method and investigated electrochemically as sulfur hosts for lithium sulfur batteries compared to bare sulfur. The results indicated that the single/double-walled tubular NiCo2S4 could be tuned to assemble the hierarchical architectures consisting of the nanoparticles, their electrochemical performances as sulfur hosts for lithium sulfur batteries are exhibited differently with respect to the host morphology and even compared to those of bare sulfur as well. Comparatively, the double-walled tubular NiCo2S4 hierarchical architecture as sulfur host for lithium sulfur batteries delivers a higher initial specific capacity of as high as 1078.9 mAh g−1, and exhibits better cyclability and rate capability, which might be ascribed to even dispersion of sulfur over the electrically conductive double-walled tubular NiCo2S4 hierarchical architecture, thus facilitating the full utilization of sulfur and the fast redox reaction kinetics of lithium polysulfides. In a word, bimetal sulfide NiCo2S4 are promising as sulfur host for the industrial implementation of lithium sulfur batteries, dependent of its optimization on morphology and structure.

Flotation Recovery of Sphalerite in Sea Water: A Feasibility Study

Mining and mineral processing industry adversely affects ecosystems and communities in nearby areas, including high freshwater consumption and scarcity. That is why the emerging global trend is to use sea water in flotation to recover valuable minerals from finely disseminated base metals ores. Recent studies investigate sea water flotation of copper, molybdenum, nickel sulphides and pyrite, while flotation of sphalerite, the main valuable mineral for zinc production, remains uncovered. This paper examines the feasibility of sphalerite flotation by conventional collectors in artificial sea water using a bubble-particles technique and frothless flotation tests. Potassium isopropyl xanthate (PIPX) and sodium isopropyl dithiophosphate (SIDTP) were used as collectors, and copper sulphate was introduced as the activator, while zinc sulphate and sodium sulphide were used as depressants. We examined the most common size fractions of sphalerite: medium (−74 + 44 μm) and fines (−44 μm). The findings showed the feasibility of sphalerite flotation in artificial sea water. We also established correlations between the rate of bubble-particle attachment and the sphalerite flotation recovery resulting in the growth of flotation recovery with the increase of the bubble-particle attachment rate. The results can be used as guidelines in choosing flotation reagents for sphalerite flotation in sea water. Another practical application of the results is the potential for sustainable development of the industrial sector, ecosystems and societies due to the replacement of fresh water by sea water, although further technological and environmental studies are required.

Synergistic effect of Fe (III) doping and MWCNTs integration on the electrochemical performance of nickel sulfide nanoparticles for hybrid supercapacitor applications

In this report, Iron (Fe) doped nickel sulfide (NiS) nanoparticles integrated with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) have been prepared by hydrothermal and ultrasonication approach. X-rays studies of synthesized samples showed the existence of single-phase hexagonal Fe–NiS along MWCNTs with crystallite size of 13.19 nm. SEM images indicated spherical Fe–NiS particles encapsulated by long and thin thread like MWCNTs. Fe–NiS@MWCNTs was drop casted on nickel foam (NF) for the supercapacitor application. Fe–NiS@MWCNTs/NF offered a specific capacity of 662C g−1 at 5 mV s−1 with excellent cyclic stability. Fe–NiS@MWCNTs/NF maintained 70.2% of initial specific capacity at a high scan rate of 100 mV s−1. For impedance studies, a small equivalent series resistance (ESR = 2.30 Ω) and charge transfer resistance (RCT = 3.12 Ω) were observed for Fe–NiS@MWCNTs/NF. The superior electrochemical performance of Fe–NiS@MWCNTs/NF can be accredited to the large surface area and intervened network of Fe–NiS@MWCNTs. Pseudocapacitive Fe–NiS and highly conductive MWCNTs generate synergistic effects that ultimately boost up the specific capacity of Fe–NiS@MWCNTs/NF electrode. The excellent electrochemical performance of proposes Fe–NiS@MWCNTs/NF as effective electroactive material for supercapacitor applications.

Improved photocatalytic oxidation of ciprofloxacin by NiS-coupled WO3 nanorods synthesized by solvothermal method under visible light

Photocatalytic oxidation of antibiotics over semiconducting nanostructured photocatalysts is stared as a capable procedure for preventing possible antimicrobial resistance. Accordingly, plenteous research suggestions for photocatalyst design and trials are investigated to realize this approach. Moreover, photostability and reusability are important factors for sustainable utilization. Herein, tungsten trioxide (WO3) nanorods were grown by a solvothermal route in the presence of double soft templates, followed by incorporating nickel sulfide (NiS) nanoparticles on their surface to have NiS/WO3 nanocomposite photocatalysts. These formed heterojunctions were analyzed via several tools. The NiS incorporation has widened the visible-light harvesting owing to the bandgap reduction from 2.82 eV for pure WO3 to 2.40 eV at 9 wt% of NiS. The mesoporous surface has not been meaningfully impacted by incorporating NiS with a value of the surface area between 163 and 189 m2 g-1. The photooxidation of ciprofloxacin (CiP) over the formed photocatalysts were done under visible-light irradiation. The 2.0 g L-1 of 9% NiS/WO3 has completely oxidized 30.2 μmol CiP at a 1.38 μmol min−1. This progressive NiS/WO3 p-n heterojunction has also implied reusability for five repetitive cycles. This excellent photoactivity is ascribed to the charge transfer by the S-scheme mechanism and the synergistic upshot of a particular NiS expanse.

Effect of Sulfur Contents in NiZnS Composite Photocatalysts on Solar Water Splitting

Solar energy is attracting much attention as an eco-friendly source for future energy needs. Herein, NiZnS photocatalysts were synthesized with a hydrothermal method at various sulfur contents. The ZnS material is widely used as a photocatalyst because of its high stability, low toxicity, and excellent charge separation characteristics. Nickel is considered a co-component in the ZnS base to improve hydrogen evolution efficiency, because nickel sulfide has a narrow band gap. Field emission scanning electron microscopy analysis was used to observe particle size and shape. As the sulfur ratio increased, the particle size increased, and relatively uniform particle sizes were obtained at the 2:2 molar ratio of NiZn:S. X-ray diffractometer analysis showed the formation of ZnO crystals at low sulfur contents in the NiZnS photocatalysts. Among the various NiZnS compositions, the NiZn:S ratio of 2:2 resulted in the highest hydrogen production rate (1541.5 μmol/g/h) with stable reproducibility. UV-vis spectroscopy was used to analyze light absorbance, and the band gap changed with different sulfur contents due to the oxygen vacancies in ZnO, as identified by X-ray photoelectron spectroscope. High amounts of thiourea used to introduce the sulfur increased the particle sizes and blocked sunlight coming to NiZnS surfaces, thereby degrading photocatalytic performance. Therefore, changing the sulfur content when fabricating the NiZnS composite photocatalysts affected the crystalline structures and band characteristics of the materials, and it finally resulted in improved light absorption, charge separation, and the hydrogen production rate of the photocatalysts.

Iron Nickel Sulfide Nanorods for Oxygen and Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

AbstractThe electrochemical water splitting process needs fabrication of cost‐effective transition metal‐based materials for its commercialization process. Transition metal chalcogenides are good electrocatalysts for such processes in different media. Herein, we have synthesized Iron Nickel Sulfide (FeNiS2) nanorods by one step hydrothermal method. The synthesized material performed excellent bifunctional activity i. e. Hydrogen Evolution Reaction (HER) & Oxygen Evolution Reaction (OER) in basic environment. The nanorod shaped FeNiS2 deliver its OER activity at an overpotential of 250 mV to afford current density 10 mA cm−2. It shows low Tafel slope of 99 mV/dec along with 11 h stability. Further, we have tested HER activity and the as‐prepared material shows a good overpotential of 141 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and low Tafel slope of 104 mV/dec with durability of 9 h. The electrochemical characterization suggests that FeNiS2 nanorod could be an efficient, OER and HER electrocatalyst for water splitting reaction.

Designing Highly Active S-g-C3N4/Te@NiS Ternary Nanocomposites for Antimicrobial Performance, Degradation of Organic Pollutants, and Their Kinetic Study

The current research is about the synthesis of pure nickel sulfide, a series of Te (0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, and 3 wt.%)-doped NiS (Te@NiS) nanoparticles (NPs), and a series of S-g-C3N4 (10, 30, 50, 70, and 80 wt.%)/Te@NiS nanocomposites (NCs), fabricated through a hydrothermal route. XRD and FTIR spectroscopic techniques demonstrated the successful synthesis of NPs and NCs. SEM-EDX images confirmed the flakelike structure and elemental constituents of the fabricated materials. Tauc plots were drawn, to calculate the band gaps of the synthesized samples. Te doping resulted in a significant reduction in the band gap of the NiS NPs. The photocatalytic efficiency of the NPs and NCs was investigated against MB, under sunlight. The results obtained for the photocatalytic activity, showed that 1%Te@NiS nanoparticles have an excellent dye degradation capacity in sunlight. This was made even better by making a series of SGCN/1% Te@NiS nanocomposites with different amounts of S-g-C3N4. When compared to NiS, Te@NiS, SGCN, and 70%SGCN/1%Te@NiS, the 70%SGCN/1%Te@NiS NCs have excellent antifungal ability. The higher impact of SGCN/Te@NiS, may be due to its enhanced ability to disperse and interact with the membranes and intracellular proteins of fungi. The 70%SGCN/1%Te@NiS NCs showed excellent antibacterial and photocatalytic efficiency. Thus, the 70%SGCN/1%Te@NiS NCs might prove fruitful in antibacterial and photocatalytic applications.

An electron-hole rich dual-site nickel catalyst for efficient photocatalytic overall water splitting

Photocatalysis offers an attractive strategy to upgrade H2O to renewable fuel H2. However, current photocatalytic hydrogen production technology often relies on additional sacrificial agents and noble metal cocatalysts, and there are limited photocatalysts possessing overall water splitting performance on their own. Here, we successfully construct an efficient catalytic system to realize overall water splitting, where hole-rich nickel phosphides (Ni2P) with polymeric carbon-oxygen semiconductor (PCOS) is the site for oxygen generation and electron-rich Ni2P with nickel sulfide (NiS) serves as the other site for producing H2. The electron-hole rich Ni2P based photocatalyst exhibits fast kinetics and a low thermodynamic energy barrier for overall water splitting with stoichiometric 2:1 hydrogen to oxygen ratio (150.7 μmol h−1 H2 and 70.2 μmol h−1 O2 produced per 100 mg photocatalyst) in a neutral solution. Density functional theory calculations show that the co-loading in Ni2P and its hybridization with PCOS or NiS can effectively regulate the electronic structures of the surface active sites, alter the reaction pathway, reduce the reaction energy barrier, boost the overall water splitting activity. In comparison with reported literatures, such photocatalyst represents the excellent performance among all reported transition-metal oxides and/or transition-metal sulfides and is even superior to noble metal catalyst.

Nanoengineered Zn-modified Nickel Sulfide (NiS) as a bifunctional electrocatalyst for overall water splitting

Developing an efficient and inexpensive electrocatalyst is of paramount importance for realizing the green hydrogen economy through electrocatalytic water splitting. Here, we demonstrated a facile large-scale, industrially viable binder-free synthesis of Zn-doped NiS electrocatalyst on bare nickel foam (NF) through a hydrothermal technique. The present catalyst, i.e., nickel sulfide (NiS) nanosheets on nickel foam with optimized doping of Zn atom (Zn–NiS-3), displays excellent catalytic efficacy for both oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). It requires an overpotential of 320 mV for OER at a current density of 50 mA cm−2 and an overpotential of 208 mV for HER at a current density of 10 mA cm−2. The water electrolyser device having Zn–NiS-3 electrocatalyst as both cathode and anode show excellent performance, requiring a cell voltage of only 1.71 V to reach a current density of 10 mA cm−2 in an alkaline media. The density functional theory (DFT) based calculations showed enhanced density of states near Fermi energy after Zn doping in NiS and attributed to the enhanced catalytic activities. Thus, the present study demonstrates that Zn–NiS-3@NF can be coined as a viable electrocatalyst for green hydrogen production.

Metal-organic framework derived r-Ni3S2 nanoparticles with enriched sulfur vacancies for supercapacitor application

Metal sulfides derived from metal-organic framework (MOF) have high porosity and easily changed morphology, so they are widely used in supercapacitors. However, they still have a few shortcomings such as poor cycle performance and low specific capacitance. The experiment shows that the generation of sulfur vacancy can optimize its electrochemical performance. Therefore, this work focuses on preparing porous nickel sulfide derived from Ni-based MOF and introducing sulfur vacancies at room temperature. Pleated nanoparticles of r-Ni3S2 that are composed of petal-like flakes were prepared with rich sulfur vacancies. This morphology has a larger specific surface area and sulfur vacancies also exposes more active sites, increases free charge carriers and reduces Gibbs free energy of surface reaction, which will enhance electrochemical performance. It is demonstrated that the specific capacitance increased significantly after the sodium borohydride reduction treatment, and the capacitance retention rate increased by 32 % after 5000 cycles. In addition, the asymmetric supercapacitor of r-Ni3S2//AC was assembled, which yielded a specific energy density of 33.7 Wh kg−1 at the power density of 1167.8 W kg−1. This research shows great potential in adjusting the crystal structure of compounds to optimize the advanced electrode materials of storage devices.

Phase transition in nickel sulphide nanoparticles

ABSTRACT The NiS nanoparticles were synthesised by the microwave-assisted chemical precipitation method. The XRD pattern shows that the prepared NiS nanoparticles have an orthorhombic structure. The SEM image of NiS nanoparticles confirms the nanostructure. The energy-dispersive X-ray analysis confirms the existence of Nickel and Sulphur in a proper ratio. The D.C. electrical resistances were measured in the temperature range 300 K–500 K. Oscillations were found in the temperature resistance curve of Nickel Sulphide nanoparticles on repeated heating and cooling due to phase transition. The XRD pattern of the powdered form of the NiS pellet used for the resistance measurement also confirms this phase transition. The two forms of UV and PL spectra of NiS nanoparticles were studied.

Retraction

Retraction: Zhang Y, Chen M, Guo P, et al. Magnetic field‐enhanced water splitting enabled by bifunctional molybdenum‐doped nickel sulfide on nickel foam. Carbon Energy. 2023; e351. https://doi.org/10.1002/cey2.351The above article, published online on 14 March 2023 on Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com), has been retracted by agreement between the authors, journal Editor‐in‐Chief, Shun Wang, and John Wiley & Sons, Inc.The retraction has been agreed as the authors found inconsistencies in the experimental data after publication. Thus, the experimental results are considered insufficient to support the conclusions of this manuscript.

Iron-doped nickel sulfide nanoparticles grown on N-doped reduced graphene oxide as efficient electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction

Transition metal sulfide electrocatalysts have attracted substantial attention because of their outstanding activity in the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Herein, the highly efficient iron-doped nickel sulfide catalyst supported on functionalized N-doped reduction graphene oxide (Fe-NiS/NrGO) was successfully prepared via a combination of hydrothermal and vulcanization methods. The doped Fe modifies the electronic structure of NiS, which accelerates the kinetics of OER. The NrGO, with a large specific surface area and high conductivity, facilitates the homogeneous dispersion of Fe-NiS nanoparticles, increasing the active catalytic area and accelerating the charge transfer rate. The Fe-NiS(2)/NrGO exhibits superior OER performance with an overpotential of 344 mV to achieve a current density of 100 mA cm−2 in 1.0 M KOH, and the Tafel slope is as low as 47 mV dec−1. The OER performance of Fe-NiS(2)/NrGO is better than that of commercial RuO2. This work will eventually help to rationally design efficient transition-metal catalysts in future technologies for OER.