Accurately prepared the large-area and efficiently 3D electrodes for overall seawater splitting

Abstract

How to achieve accurately regulation of catalytic electrodes is the challenge of designing high-performance catalytic electrodes. In this work, large area, high stability and excellent conductivity electrode are prepared via one-step mild (298 K) electroplating method and precise control of electroplating parameters on nickel foam (FeNi@NF). The FeNi@NF electrode catalyst the hydrogen/oxygen evolution reaction (HER/OER) in simulate seawater (1.0 M KOH + 0.5 M NaCl), and achieves the current density of 100 mA cm⁻² with only 287 mV and 323 mV overpotential. The alkaline electrolyzer drives 100 mA cm⁻² for overall water splitting at a low voltage of 1.73 V. More importantly, the catalytic performance durable for more than 5 days at the industrial current density (1000 mA cm⁻²), and the designed large-area 25.0 cm² catalytic electrode can achieve stable operation of industrial proton exchange membrane electrolyser. This preparation strategy provides a new idea for the current research of energy engineering and energy storage.