Preparation of nanostructured Cu(OH)(2) and CuO electrocatalysts for water oxidation by electrophoresis deposition

Herein, we report the synthesis of Cu(OH)(2) nanobelts with high yield at low cost by a simple aqueous solution reaction. The Cu(OH)(2)-FTO electrode was then fabricated by a facile electrophoresis deposition method with the as-prepared Cu(OH)(2) nanobelts, which require no binding agents. By subsequent heat treatment at 300 degrees C for 2 h, the Cu(OH)(2)-FTO electrode was converted to the CuO-FTO electrode. The investigation of electrocatalysis of the Cu(OH)(2)-FTO and CuO-FTO electrodes for water oxidation was conducted in a 0.2 M phosphate buffer solution at pH 12. The CuO-FTO electrode can catalyze water oxidation with an impressive onset overpotential of 370 mV and an overpotential of 500 mV for a current density of 1 mA/cm(2) with a low Tafel slope of 57 mV/dec. This facile fabrication strategy is appealing for realizing the practical application of Cu-based electrocatalysts for water oxidation and is expected to be extended to prepare other heterocatalyst electrodes.