Biomass-Derived Catalysts with Dual Functions for Electrochemical Water Splitting
With the continuous consumption of fossil energy and the related environmental problems, clean energy, especially the hydrogen energy-derived water electrolysis, has attracted wide attention. However, as a result of the high energy consumption of water electrolysis and the limitations of single-func...
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2025-07-01
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| author | Wangchuang Zhu Xinghua Zhang Qi Zhang Lungang Chen Xiuzheng Zhuang Longlong Ma |
| author_facet | Wangchuang Zhu Xinghua Zhang Qi Zhang Lungang Chen Xiuzheng Zhuang Longlong Ma |
| author_sort | Wangchuang Zhu |
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| description | With the continuous consumption of fossil energy and the related environmental problems, clean energy, especially the hydrogen energy-derived water electrolysis, has attracted wide attention. However, as a result of the high energy consumption of water electrolysis and the limitations of single-function catalysts, there is an urgent need for cheap and simple-to-make bifunctional catalysts. In this work, based on the NiFe-LDH that is usually used for OER (Oxygen Evolution Reaction), doping of heteroatoms was carried out and a bifunctional catalyst could be then prepared using biomass as the carbon source. The preparation of catalyst precursors and in situ reduction were performed through the coupling process of hydrothermal and pyrolysis to enhance the electrolytic activity of the catalyst. Results showed that the overpotentials required to reach a current density of 10 mA·cm<sup>−2</sup> for the HER and OER processes were 305.2 mV and 310.4 mV, respectively, which are superior to the commercial catalysts. In the subsequent characterization, the structural characteristics of the catalyst support and their structure–activity correlation with active metals were systematically investigated by TEM, XRD, and XPS analysis, providing mechanistic insights into the catalytic behavior. The basic catalytic mechanisms of HER and OER were also obtained: the HER process was due to the formation of a Ni<sub>3</sub>Fe alloy structure during catalyst preparation, which changed the electronic structure of the catalyst, while the OER process was induced by the formation of a NiOOH intermediate. The research results are expected to provide new ideas and data support for the preparation of bifunctional catalysts. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-41e4512d1eb24d75ae2ee918048ade33 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1996-1073 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Energies |
| spelling | doaj-art-41e4512d1eb24d75ae2ee918048ade332025-08-20T02:45:45ZengMDPI AGEnergies1996-10732025-07-011814359210.3390/en18143592Biomass-Derived Catalysts with Dual Functions for Electrochemical Water SplittingWangchuang Zhu0Xinghua Zhang1Qi Zhang2Lungang Chen3Xiuzheng Zhuang4Longlong Ma5Key Laboratory of Energy Thermal Conversion and Control of Ministry of Education, School of Energy and Environment, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, ChinaKey Laboratory of Energy Thermal Conversion and Control of Ministry of Education, School of Energy and Environment, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, ChinaKey Laboratory of Energy Thermal Conversion and Control of Ministry of Education, School of Energy and Environment, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, ChinaKey Laboratory of Energy Thermal Conversion and Control of Ministry of Education, School of Energy and Environment, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, ChinaKey Laboratory of Energy Thermal Conversion and Control of Ministry of Education, School of Energy and Environment, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, ChinaKey Laboratory of Energy Thermal Conversion and Control of Ministry of Education, School of Energy and Environment, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, ChinaWith the continuous consumption of fossil energy and the related environmental problems, clean energy, especially the hydrogen energy-derived water electrolysis, has attracted wide attention. However, as a result of the high energy consumption of water electrolysis and the limitations of single-function catalysts, there is an urgent need for cheap and simple-to-make bifunctional catalysts. In this work, based on the NiFe-LDH that is usually used for OER (Oxygen Evolution Reaction), doping of heteroatoms was carried out and a bifunctional catalyst could be then prepared using biomass as the carbon source. The preparation of catalyst precursors and in situ reduction were performed through the coupling process of hydrothermal and pyrolysis to enhance the electrolytic activity of the catalyst. Results showed that the overpotentials required to reach a current density of 10 mA·cm<sup>−2</sup> for the HER and OER processes were 305.2 mV and 310.4 mV, respectively, which are superior to the commercial catalysts. In the subsequent characterization, the structural characteristics of the catalyst support and their structure–activity correlation with active metals were systematically investigated by TEM, XRD, and XPS analysis, providing mechanistic insights into the catalytic behavior. The basic catalytic mechanisms of HER and OER were also obtained: the HER process was due to the formation of a Ni<sub>3</sub>Fe alloy structure during catalyst preparation, which changed the electronic structure of the catalyst, while the OER process was induced by the formation of a NiOOH intermediate. The research results are expected to provide new ideas and data support for the preparation of bifunctional catalysts.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/14/3592biomass-derived carbonheteroatomic dopingbifunctional catalystwater electrolysis |
| spellingShingle | Wangchuang Zhu Xinghua Zhang Qi Zhang Lungang Chen Xiuzheng Zhuang Longlong Ma Biomass-Derived Catalysts with Dual Functions for Electrochemical Water Splitting Energies biomass-derived carbon heteroatomic doping bifunctional catalyst water electrolysis |
| title | Biomass-Derived Catalysts with Dual Functions for Electrochemical Water Splitting |
| title_full | Biomass-Derived Catalysts with Dual Functions for Electrochemical Water Splitting |
| title_fullStr | Biomass-Derived Catalysts with Dual Functions for Electrochemical Water Splitting |
| title_full_unstemmed | Biomass-Derived Catalysts with Dual Functions for Electrochemical Water Splitting |
| title_short | Biomass-Derived Catalysts with Dual Functions for Electrochemical Water Splitting |
| title_sort | biomass derived catalysts with dual functions for electrochemical water splitting |
| topic | biomass-derived carbon heteroatomic doping bifunctional catalyst water electrolysis |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/14/3592 |
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