Grass-like NixSey nanowire arrays shelled with NiFe LDH nanosheets as a 3D hierarchical core-shell electrocatalyst for efficient upgrading of biomass-derived 5-hydroxymethylfurfural and furfural

Electrocatalytic upgrading of biomass represents a promising way for the green synthesis of value-added fine chemicals. Rational construction of highly active and low-cost electrocatalysts with superior durability is of great importance for promoting this electrochemical process. In this work, we reported a novel 3D hierarchical NixSey-NiFe layered double hydroxide (LDH) core-shell nanostructure in situ grown on Ni foam (NixSey-NiFe@NF) for efficient electrocatalytic oxidation of biomass-derived 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) to 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) and furfural (FUR) to furoic acid (FurAc), respectively. By virtue of the excellent electrical conductivity and good mechanical strength of the NixSey nanowire core, abundant exposed active sites of the NiFe LDH nanosheet shell, and the open structure of the hierarchical nanoarrays, the integrated core-shell NixSey-NiFe LDH@NF electrode exhibited outstanding catalytic performance for HMF and FUR oxidation by obtaining considerable yields of FDCA (99.3%) and FurAc (99.7%) with high faradaic efficiency (FE) for FDCA (98.9%) and FurAc (99.5%), as well as superior stability retaining 96.7% FE for FDCA and 97.1% FE for FurAc after six successive electrolysis cycles. This work offers an effective approach to engineer novel electrocatalysts towards efficient upgrading of biomass-derived platform chemicals.

Automated summary

In this study, a novel 3D hierarchical NixSey-NiFe layered double hydroxide core-shell nanostructure was reported for efficient electrocatalytic oxidation of biomass-derived compounds, showing outstanding catalytic performance and stability.