Reusable NiCo/Cu Catalysts for Sustainable Hydrogen Generation

TL;DR

This paper introduces a low-cost, reusable Ni–Co/Cu catalyst for efficient and sustainable hydrogen production from sodium borohydride.

Contribution

The study demonstrates that Co-rich Ni–Co/Cu catalysts synthesized via electroless deposition offer high hydrogen generation efficiency and durability.

Findings

Ni10Co90/Cu catalyst retains 88% of its initial activity after five reuse cycles.

Maximum hydrogen production rate of 14.22 L min−1 gcat−1 is achieved at 90 wt.% Co loading.

The catalyst exhibits an activation energy of 52.5 kJ mol−1 for the hydrolysis reaction.

Abstract

What are the main findings?

Electroless deposition provides a simple and cost-effective route to Ni–Co coatings on Cu.

Catalytic activity strongly varies with Co content in the 4–90 wt.% range.

Ni10Co90/Cu retains high stability, with only 12% activity loss after reuse.

What are the implications of the main findings?

Synergistic Ni–Co interaction significantly enhances hydrogen generation efficiency.

Co-rich Ni–Co coatings exhibit superior hydrogen generation activity.

The Ni–Co/Cu system is a viable, low-cost catalyst for sustainable H2 production.

The generation of high-purity hydrogen via chemical reaction from hydrogen-rich materials is one of the ways in the alternative energy industry. In this approach, the utilization of catalytic materials that possess the capacity to initiate the decomposition of the starting material and the subsequent release of hydrogen is of paramount importance. In this study, nickel/cobalt-plated copper catalysts (NiCo/Cu) are presented, comprising from 4 to 90 wt.% of cobalt as catalytic materials for hydrogen generation via sodium borohydride (NaBH4) hydrolysis reaction. The NiCo/Cu catalysts were synthesized via electroless deposition from glycine-based baths, utilizing Ni2+ and Co2+ ions as metal sources and morpholine borane (MB) as the reducing compound. The catalytic performance in alkaline NaBH4 hydrolysis was found to correlate with the cobalt loading in the coating. The maximum rate of hydrogen production, which was determined to be 14.22 L min−1 gcat−1, was achieved at 343 K for a catalyst composed of 90 wt.% Co. The reaction proceeded with the activation energy of 52.5 kJ mol−1, while the catalyst exhibited high durability, preserving nearly 88% of its initial activity after five successive reaction cycles. The combination of nickel and cobalt, along with their synergistic effect and high efficiency in the borohydride hydrolysis reaction, makes them promising catalysts.

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