3D Hydrophilic Nickel Foam Supported NiF3-NiF2 Catalyst for Alkaline Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Alkaline water electrolysis is a low-cost method for large-scale and sustainable hydrogen production. However, slow kinetics of water dissociation in alkaline electrolyte limits the long-term stability and high-activity of the catalyst for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). In this work, non-noble metal based HER catalyst NiF3-NiF2/HNF (hydrophilic nickel foam), synthesized by electrodeposition and fluorination on nickel foam (NF), shows an excellent control over both the factors. The catalyst exhibits the 3D porous structure, in which super-hydrophilicity caused by HNF and local charge redistribution by the interaction between NiF2 and NiF3, makes the catalyst to present relatively a good performance for HER. An overpotential of only 50 mV and 177 mV is required to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm−2 and 100 mA cm−2, respectively. Under chronoamperometric test, current density of 10 mA cm−2 remains constant for 48 h, revealing the long-term stability of catalyst. Overall, this work gives a new paradigm in the design of high-performance non-noble metal based catalyst for HER in alkaline electrolyte.