Preparation of Ti@NiB electrode via electroless plating toward high-efficient alkaline simulated seawater splitting

To achieve efficient and stable hydrogen production by water splitting is of great challenges. Herein, a 2D self-supporting catalytic electrode with stability is designed to obtain hydrogen on a large scale from alkaline sim-ulated seawater (1.0 M KOH + 0.5 M NaCl, pH = 14). Specifically, the amorphous NiB active materials are modified on the surface of Ti plate by electroless plating with different time without adding binders and other additives, and Ti@NiB bifunctional catalytic electrode is simply prepared at room temperature. The overpoten-tial of hydrogen evolution reaction at 10 mA center dot cm(-2) is 149 mV in alkaline simulated seawater while that of oxy-gen evolution reaction is 397 mV at 50 mA center dot cm(-2). The Ti@NiB electrode showing good stability during overall water splitting electrolyzes for over 40 h at 20 mA center dot cm(-2), partly due to the corrosion resistance of Ti plate, the increased specific surface area with the modification of amorphous NiB, and the inseparable attachment between NiB active materials and the robust substrate. This work provides a strategy for preparing electrodes with high activity, low cost and long-term stability application.

Automated summary

The study presents a stable catalytic electrode design for efficient and stable hydrogen production in alkaline simulated seawater. By modifying active material NiB on Ti plate through electroless plating, a bifunctional Ti@NiB electrode is prepared. Experimental results demonstrate the electrode's good stability and high electrolysis efficiency.