Design of highly active and durable oxygen evolution catalyst with intrinsic chlorine inhibition property for seawater electrolysis
Jieli Chen, Xiaodong Shi, Suyang Feng, Jing Li, Xiaohong Gao, Wu Xiao, Ke Li, Anyuan Qi, Chenghang You, Xinlong Tian
Abstract
High-efficiency seawater electrolysis is impeded by the low activity and low durability of oxygen evolution catalysts due to the complex composition and competitive side reactions in seawater. Herein, a heterogeneous-structured catalyst is constructed by depositing NiFe-layered double hydroxides (NiFe-LDH) on the substrate of MXene (V2CTx) modified Ni foam (NF), and abbreviated as NiFe-LDH/V2CTx/NF. As demonstrated, owing to the intrinsic negative charge characteristic of V2CTx, chlorine ions are denied entry to the interface between NiFe-LDH and V2CTx/NF substrate, thus endowing NiFe-LDH/V2CTx/NF catalyst with high corrosion resistance and durable stability for 110 h at 500 mA cm−2. Meanwhile, the two-dimensional structure and high electrical conductivity of V2CTx can respectively enlarge the electrochemical active surface area and guarantee fast charge transfer, thereby synergistically promoting the catalytic performance of NiFe-LDH/V2CTx/NF in both deionized water electrolyte (261 mV at 100 mA cm−2) and simulated seawater electrolyte (241 mV at 100 mA cm−2). This work can guide the preparation of oxygen evolution catalysts and accelerate the industrialization of seawater electrolysis.