A green synthetic approach: crystalline–amorphous interface CoFe-LDH as a sustainable electrocatalyst for water oxidation with low cell voltage and evaluation of its sustainability standards

Abstract

The manufacture of exceptionally effective and durable green electrocatalysts made from earth abundant elements yields emerging components in green energy generation. Greenly synthesized optimal Co₄Fe₆-LDH was found to be a proficient electrocatalyst for the OER process in this work. In the OER process, the optimal Co₄Fe₆-LDH on a glassy carbon electrode exhibited a lower necessary overpotential (290 mV) to reach 10 mA cm⁻² and a smaller Tafel slope of 43 mV dec⁻¹ compared with IrO₂ (361 mV, 115 mV dec⁻¹). The sustainable Co₄Fe₆-LDH/NF exhibits a lower overpotential of 310 mV than IrO₂/NF (360 mV) at 10 mA cm⁻². Also, Co₄Fe₆-LDH exhibits outstanding OER performance and stability over 100 h with 3.1% potential loss in alkaline medium. The solar-powered water oxidation at 1.58 V demonstrates the efficiency of Co₄Fe₆-LDH for solar to hydrogen conversion. This technique implies that the greenly synthesized Co₄Fe₆-LDH was superior to the expensive electrocatalysts. As an outcome, inexpensive industrial-scale H₂ generation might be possible with commercial solar cells.