ZIF-67 derived cobalt-based catalysts for hydrogen generation from the hydrolysis of alkaline sodium borohydride solution

Cobalt-based catalysts are highly efficient and low-cost for sodium borohydride (NaBH 4 ) hydrolysis to generate hydrogen. Co 3 O 4 and carbon-supported metal Co (i.e., Co/C) catalysts were prepared by means of ZIF-67 pyrolysis. Effects of pyrolysis temperature and atmosphere on catalyst composition and performance were mainly investigated. For material analyses, a series of characterizations were carried out including FE-SEM, TEM, XRD, BET, TGA and ICP-AES. Conventional water-displacement method was employed to evaluate the catalyst performance toward NaBH 4 hydrolysis. Experimental results indicated that catalytic activity of the Co 3 O 4 was much higher than that of Co/C, and the reasons were discussed in detail.