SCI和EI收录∣中国化工学会会刊

中国化学工程学报 ›› 2025, Vol. 86 ›› Issue (10): 254-266.DOI: 10.1016/j.cjche.2025.09.007

• Special Issue on Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the School of Chemical Engineering and Technology of Tianjin University • 上一篇    

Pulse electrodeposited NiMoZn alloy hydrophobicized with PTFE for high performance alkaline water electrolysis

Yuan Sheng, Wenxing Zhu, Zhijian Li, Shuo Li, Liangbin Shao, Jianguo Wang   

  1. State Key Laboratory of Green Chemical Synthesis and Conversion, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Surface and Interface Science and Engineering for Catalysts, College of Chemical Engineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China
  • 收稿日期:2025-04-06 修回日期:2025-09-17 接受日期:2025-09-21 出版日期:2025-10-28 发布日期:2025-09-29
  • 通讯作者: Jianguo Wang,E-mail:jgw@zjut.edu.cn
  • 基金资助:
    The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (22494710, 22408328). This research was also supported by Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China (LQN25B060002).

Pulse electrodeposited NiMoZn alloy hydrophobicized with PTFE for high performance alkaline water electrolysis

Yuan Sheng, Wenxing Zhu, Zhijian Li, Shuo Li, Liangbin Shao, Jianguo Wang   

  1. State Key Laboratory of Green Chemical Synthesis and Conversion, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Surface and Interface Science and Engineering for Catalysts, College of Chemical Engineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China
  • Received:2025-04-06 Revised:2025-09-17 Accepted:2025-09-21 Online:2025-10-28 Published:2025-09-29
  • Contact: Jianguo Wang,E-mail:jgw@zjut.edu.cn
  • Supported by:
    The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (22494710, 22408328). This research was also supported by Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China (LQN25B060002).

摘要: Green hydrogen production by alkaline water electrolysis is an important technology in the decarbonization of the current industry. However, its large-scale application is limited by mediocre performance of conventional Raney Ni electrocatalysts. Herein, high-performance NiMoZn alloy catalysts of the Raney Ni type are developed by pulse electrodeposition for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). The optimized catalyst, NMZ-CA, exhibits an overpotential of 37 mV at 10 mA·cm-2 and a Tafel slope of 27 mV·dec-1 in 1 mol·L-1 KOH. Tafel slope measurements, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and H2 temperature-programmed desorption experiments show that the incorporation of Mo and Zn in Ni weakens the binding of HER intermediate (Hads) on strongly adsorbing sites, leading to improved electrochemical kinetics. Electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction study reveals that a phase-pure Mo-doped Ni2Zn11 intermetallic precatalyst formed via pulse electrodeposition and subsequent heat treatment is key to the structure integrity and performance of the catalyst after activation by alkaline leaching. Modification of NMZ-CA with PTFE enhances its HER performance by facilitating gas removal and improving structure integrity. A practical alkaline water electrolyzer built on the modified NMZ/PTFE-CA electrode delivers 2.0 A·cm-2 at 1.92 V cell voltage and operates for 250 h without decay. This work provides insights into the synergy between Ni, Mo, and Zn in Raney Ni-type catalysts, and demonstrates the hydrophobic modification as an effective strategy for electrode development in high-performance alkaline water electrolysis.

关键词: Hydrogen production, Electrolysis, Non-noble metal, High current density, Stability, Pulse electrodeposition

Abstract: Green hydrogen production by alkaline water electrolysis is an important technology in the decarbonization of the current industry. However, its large-scale application is limited by mediocre performance of conventional Raney Ni electrocatalysts. Herein, high-performance NiMoZn alloy catalysts of the Raney Ni type are developed by pulse electrodeposition for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). The optimized catalyst, NMZ-CA, exhibits an overpotential of 37 mV at 10 mA·cm-2 and a Tafel slope of 27 mV·dec-1 in 1 mol·L-1 KOH. Tafel slope measurements, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and H2 temperature-programmed desorption experiments show that the incorporation of Mo and Zn in Ni weakens the binding of HER intermediate (Hads) on strongly adsorbing sites, leading to improved electrochemical kinetics. Electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction study reveals that a phase-pure Mo-doped Ni2Zn11 intermetallic precatalyst formed via pulse electrodeposition and subsequent heat treatment is key to the structure integrity and performance of the catalyst after activation by alkaline leaching. Modification of NMZ-CA with PTFE enhances its HER performance by facilitating gas removal and improving structure integrity. A practical alkaline water electrolyzer built on the modified NMZ/PTFE-CA electrode delivers 2.0 A·cm-2 at 1.92 V cell voltage and operates for 250 h without decay. This work provides insights into the synergy between Ni, Mo, and Zn in Raney Ni-type catalysts, and demonstrates the hydrophobic modification as an effective strategy for electrode development in high-performance alkaline water electrolysis.

Key words: Hydrogen production, Electrolysis, Non-noble metal, High current density, Stability, Pulse electrodeposition