Producing green hydrogen in an efficient way using a nexus of a waste-biomass derived catalyst and a cost-effective & scalable electrode platform

Abstract

Green hydrogen has emerged as a promising clean energy carrier and renewable energy storage option. It has been promoted as a pivotal solution to the climate crisis and to lowering air pollution. A viable production of green hydrogen requires an efficient and durable non-precious metal electrocatalyst. In light of this, the current study describes the synthesis of an electrocatalyst consisting of Ni and N-doped graphitic carbon (Ni@NC) by a pyrolysis method under an argon atmosphere at different temperatures and the use of a cost-effective and scalable electrode platform for green hydrogen production. The electrocatalyst that was synthesized at 800 °C exhibits an overpotential of 400 mV vs. RHE at a current density of 10 mA cm⁻², the Tafel slope of 110 mV decade⁻¹, and good stability for the HER. The charge transfer resistance at the electrode–electrolyte interface is 10.8 Ω in the current study. The symbiotic effect of Ni carbon mixed with nitrogen shows excellent hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity. The morphology and structural properties of the electrocatalyst were well-characterized using XRD, FT-IR, Raman, FE-SEM, EDX, TEM, and XPS analysis. The Plastic Chip Electrode (PCE) enhanced the electrocatalytic activity and improved the durability issues, such as carbon corrosion in acidic conditions for the HER by the synergetic effect between the carbon electrode and a component of the catalyst.