Bimetallic NiCu alloy nanoparticles supported on porous carbon nanosheets as an efficient electrocatalyst for methanol and urea electrooxidation

The development of non-precious, efficient, and nanostructured electrocatalysts using a facile method to replace noble metal-based electrocatalysts has received wide attention in the field of fuel cell technology. In this study, a highly efficient and non-precious electrocatalyst was fabricated via facile and in situ two-step method. The electrocatalyst that has been developed relies on the utilization of nickel-copper alloy nanoparticles (NiCu), which have been supported on porous carbon nanosheets (PCNs). The preparation method involved a microwave-assisted fabrication of carbon quantum dots with nickel and copper ions chelated on their surface, followed by calcination to produce NiCu@PCNs. The structure and the surface morphology of NiCu@PCNs were investigated by TGA, XRD, TEM, and SEM techniques. XRD results proved that the average size of bimetallic Ni-Cu is 18.31 nm, and PCNs are made up of 9.33 stacked graphitic layers. TEM image confirmed that NiCu NPs are encapsulated into carbon and distributed over the PCNs, forming a core-shell nanostructure. The electrocatalysts, NiCu@PCNs, possess a favorable electrochemically active surface area of 116 cm(-2) and exhibit superior electrocatalytic performance for methanol oxidation in comparison to urea. The onset potentials value of methanol and urea oxidation were 0.34 V and 0.38 V vs. Ag/AgCl and the highest current densities of 140 and 62 mA cm(-2), respectively. This study provides a simplistic method for the design of PCNs-supported bimetallic nanoparticles, which can serve as non-precious electrocatalysts and an alternative to noble metal-based catalysts.

Automated summary

A highly efficient and non-precious electrocatalyst was developed using a facile and in situ two-step method. The electrocatalyst utilized nickel-copper alloy nanoparticles supported on porous carbon nanosheets. The electrocatalyst exhibited a favorable electrochemically active surface area and superior electrocatalytic performance for methanol oxidation, serving as an alternative to noble metal-based catalysts.