Alkaline Water Splitting by Ni-Fe Nanoparticles Deposited on Carbon Fibre and Nickel-Coated Carbon Fibre Substrates

Abstract

This study presents the results of electrochemical investigations on Hydrogen and Oxygen Evolution Reactions (HER and OER), conducted on commercially available carbon fibres and nickel-coated carbon fibres modified using nanoscale NiFe alloy particles in 0.1 M of NaOH solution. The obtained results demonstrated enhanced catalytic activity of the NiFe-modified fibre materials, with approximately 14,700% and 25% improvement in the OER and HER activity (respectively), as compared to unmodified electrodes. The catalytic properties were evaluated by means of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, Tafel polarisation and cyclic, and linear voltammetry techniques. The deposited particles’ distribution and quantities present on the investigated materials were analysed using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy-Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) methods. These findings provided valuable insights into the electrochemical, catalytic performance of NiFe-modified carbon fibre/nickel-coated carbon fibre materials, simultaneously highlighting their potential application as catalyst materials for electrodes in industrial-scale water electrolysers.