Tuning the Bifunctional La <sub>2</sub> Ni <sub>1.8</sub> Fe <sub>0.2</sub> O <sub>6</sub> /rGO Nanocomposites for Supercapacitor and Water Splitting Applications
I. Ajin, A. Chandra Bose
Abstract
The escalating environmental degradation and the ongoing energy crisis linked to fossil fuel consumption have intensified worldwide attention to developing and utilizing sustainable clean energy solutions. Consequently, there is an urgent need to enhance and adopt various energy conversion and storage technologies to support the efficient production and utilization of clean energy sources. Innovative electrode design is essential for performing energy conversion and storage applications together. This work aims to fabricate a nanocomposite electrode and an electrocatalyst by integrating reduced graphene oxide with La 2 Ni 1.8 Fe 0.2 O 6 (LNF) nanoparticles, harnessing the superior electrical conductivity of rGO for improved performance. Comprehensive physical, electrochemical, and electrocatalytic characterizations are conducted to evaluate the properties of the prepared electrodes. The composite of 20% rGO with LNF (L20@Ni-F) has good electrochemical and electrocatalytic performance compared to the other composites (0, 5, 10, and 25% rGO). The fabricated asymmetric hybrid device attained a specific capacity of 471 C g –1, a maximum specific energy of 77.16 W h kg –1, and a specific power of 589.76 W kg –1 at the specific current of 1 A g –1 . The same electrode as an electrocatalyst has an overpotential of 420 mV (@10 mA cm –2 ) with a Tafel slope of 197 mV dec –1 and an outstanding overpotential of 271 mV (@-10 mA cm –2 ) with a Tafel slope of 94 mV dec –1 for oxygen evolution reaction and hydrogen evolution reaction, respectively. These results offer a novel strategy for the promising development and fabrication of bifunctional catalysts for supercapacitor and water splitting applications.