Enhancing the Oxygen Evolution Reaction Activity of Sputtered Ni, NiO, and NiNiO Thin Films by Incorporating Fe
Abstract The effect of Fe‐containing alkaline electrolyte, on the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity of Ni electrocatalysts, has long been of interest as Fe increases the OER activity of Ni electrocatalysts. However, controversy exists as to whether it is surface or bulk Fe that is responsible...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley-VCH
2024-02-01
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| Series: | ChemElectroChem |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/celc.202300485 |
| _version_ | 1797201031994540032 |
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| author | Megan Muriel Heath Marcelle Potgieter Prof. Frode Seland Prof. Svein Sunde Prof. Roelof Jacobus Kriek |
| author_facet | Megan Muriel Heath Marcelle Potgieter Prof. Frode Seland Prof. Svein Sunde Prof. Roelof Jacobus Kriek |
| author_sort | Megan Muriel Heath |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The effect of Fe‐containing alkaline electrolyte, on the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity of Ni electrocatalysts, has long been of interest as Fe increases the OER activity of Ni electrocatalysts. However, controversy exists as to whether it is surface or bulk Fe that is responsible for the increased activity. In this study, magnetron sputtering was employed to sputter Ni, NiO and NiNiO thin film electrocatalysts to study the effect that different concentrations of Fe in the electrolyte have on their OER activities. It was found that increasing concentrations of Fe increasingly enhanced the OER activity of these thin film electrocatalysts until the electrolyte was saturated with Fe. The lowest overpotential achieved is 279 mV (at 10 mA cm−2) for NiNiO cycled in KOH containing 1 mM Fe, with all three thin film electrocatalysts exhibiting overpotentials within the same range after 30 voltammetry cycles in 0.9 ppm Fe and 1 mM Fe. All Tafel slopes are between 36 and 45 mV dec−1 indicating similar kinetics for the samples cycled in different Fe concentrations. Energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy results show that Fe is found in the top layers of the electrocatalysts after cycling. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T00:19:40Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-256d2a42e63144d6b30b2890fa0204e1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2196-0216 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T07:41:05Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Wiley-VCH |
| record_format | Article |
| series | ChemElectroChem |
| spelling | doaj.art-256d2a42e63144d6b30b2890fa0204e12024-04-19T13:10:31ZengWiley-VCHChemElectroChem2196-02162024-02-01114n/an/a10.1002/celc.202300485Enhancing the Oxygen Evolution Reaction Activity of Sputtered Ni, NiO, and NiNiO Thin Films by Incorporating FeMegan Muriel Heath0Marcelle Potgieter1Prof. Frode Seland2Prof. Svein Sunde3Prof. Roelof Jacobus Kriek4Electrochemistry for Energy & Environment Group, Research Focus Area: Chemical Resource Beneficiation (CRB) North-West University Private Bag X6001 Potchefstroom 2520 South AfricaElectrochemistry for Energy & Environment Group, Research Focus Area: Chemical Resource Beneficiation (CRB) North-West University Private Bag X6001 Potchefstroom 2520 South AfricaDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) Trondheim NO-7491 NorwayDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) Trondheim NO-7491 NorwayElectrochemistry for Energy & Environment Group, Research Focus Area: Chemical Resource Beneficiation (CRB) North-West University Private Bag X6001 Potchefstroom 2520 South AfricaAbstract The effect of Fe‐containing alkaline electrolyte, on the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity of Ni electrocatalysts, has long been of interest as Fe increases the OER activity of Ni electrocatalysts. However, controversy exists as to whether it is surface or bulk Fe that is responsible for the increased activity. In this study, magnetron sputtering was employed to sputter Ni, NiO and NiNiO thin film electrocatalysts to study the effect that different concentrations of Fe in the electrolyte have on their OER activities. It was found that increasing concentrations of Fe increasingly enhanced the OER activity of these thin film electrocatalysts until the electrolyte was saturated with Fe. The lowest overpotential achieved is 279 mV (at 10 mA cm−2) for NiNiO cycled in KOH containing 1 mM Fe, with all three thin film electrocatalysts exhibiting overpotentials within the same range after 30 voltammetry cycles in 0.9 ppm Fe and 1 mM Fe. All Tafel slopes are between 36 and 45 mV dec−1 indicating similar kinetics for the samples cycled in different Fe concentrations. Energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy results show that Fe is found in the top layers of the electrocatalysts after cycling.https://doi.org/10.1002/celc.202300485thin film electrocatalystsmagnetron sputteringoxygen evolution reaction (OER)hydrogeniron-containing electrolyte |
| spellingShingle | Megan Muriel Heath Marcelle Potgieter Prof. Frode Seland Prof. Svein Sunde Prof. Roelof Jacobus Kriek Enhancing the Oxygen Evolution Reaction Activity of Sputtered Ni, NiO, and NiNiO Thin Films by Incorporating Fe ChemElectroChem thin film electrocatalysts magnetron sputtering oxygen evolution reaction (OER) hydrogen iron-containing electrolyte |
| title | Enhancing the Oxygen Evolution Reaction Activity of Sputtered Ni, NiO, and NiNiO Thin Films by Incorporating Fe |
| title_full | Enhancing the Oxygen Evolution Reaction Activity of Sputtered Ni, NiO, and NiNiO Thin Films by Incorporating Fe |
| title_fullStr | Enhancing the Oxygen Evolution Reaction Activity of Sputtered Ni, NiO, and NiNiO Thin Films by Incorporating Fe |
| title_full_unstemmed | Enhancing the Oxygen Evolution Reaction Activity of Sputtered Ni, NiO, and NiNiO Thin Films by Incorporating Fe |
| title_short | Enhancing the Oxygen Evolution Reaction Activity of Sputtered Ni, NiO, and NiNiO Thin Films by Incorporating Fe |
| title_sort | enhancing the oxygen evolution reaction activity of sputtered ni nio and ninio thin films by incorporating fe |
| topic | thin film electrocatalysts magnetron sputtering oxygen evolution reaction (OER) hydrogen iron-containing electrolyte |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/celc.202300485 |
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