Heterojunction interface engineering for stable and effective porous Fe3O4-ZnO nanocomposites: A highly efficient synergistic Catalyst for oxygen evolution reaction

Abstract

Abstract The development of renewable energy technologies, such as fuel cells and metal-air batteries, relies heavily on the availability of highly efficient electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). In this study, a mesoporous Fe3O4-ZnO nanocomposites was synthesized using a simple and economically viable approach at a relatively low temperature. The observed catalytic activity of the prepared Fe3O4-ZnO nanocomposites mesoporous nanostructure was found to be remarkable. Additionally, the nanostructure exhibited a high tolerance to methanol and demonstrated durability towards oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline media. In the course of the experiment, it was observed that the catalyst exhibited noteworthy activity in the Oxygen Evolution Reaction (OER) when compared to the commercially available RuO2 catalyst. This was evident through a more negative onset potential and higher current. The catalyst's notable capacity for high oxygen reaction activity may potentially enhance the synergistic effect resulting from the combination of defect sites and the porous structure of Fe3O4-ZnO nanocomposites. The findings of this study indicate that the Fe3O4-ZnO nanocomposites exhibit promising attributes as an electrocatalyst with overpotential and Tafel slope value of 350 mV and 62 mVdec− 1 for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in real-world scenarios.