Carbon Ceramic Electrodes Modified with Alpha-Nickel Hydroxide Applied to the Electro-Oxidation of Methanol in Alkaline Medium

Abstract

The preparation of alpha nickel hydroxide and its incorporation into the carbon ceramic electrodes (CCEs) was reported. The nickel hydroxide was obtained by mixing nickel acetate and glycerin, the obtained solution was mixed with a solution of NaOH/butanol. Carbon ceramic (CC) was obtained by the sol-gel process, and it was mixed with nickel hydroxide, in various proportions. The material obtained was used as an electrode for electro-oxidation of methanol in alkaline medium. The CCE has no catalytic activity for the electro-oxidation of methanol, but the CCE/α-Ni(OH)2 promotes the electro-oxidation of methanol potential of 0.53 V vs. Ag/AgCl, yielding a current density of about 100 mA.cm-2. The highest oxidation current was obtained with 1.90 mol.L-1 of methanol. The CCE has no signs of poisoning. All results indicate that the CCE/α-Ni(OH)2 is a promising material for electro-oxidation of methanol in alkaline medium, to obtain high current densities.