FeCoNi Alloy as Noble Metal-Free Electrocatalyst for Oxygen Evolution Reaction (OER)

The development of efficient and durable noble metal-free electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is highly desired in polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) based water electrolysis and metal-air batteries but still remains a challenge. In this paper, we employ co-precipitation method to prepare layered double hydroxides followed by calcination to synthesize nanoalloy catalyst, which was further characterized by Xray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM/EDS), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. As a novel OER electrocatalyst, the FeCoNi alloy catalyst shows remarkable OER activity enhancement with an overpotential of only 400 mV and a low Tafel slope 72 mV dec(-1). This work offers a unique paradigm for the synthesis of competitive electrocatalyst for OER with excellent durability under alkaline condition.