It is highly desired to design high-performance electrocatalysts for urea oxidation reaction (UOR) that can be utilized for hydrogen production from urea-containing water, although this remains a significant challenge. In this study, low-crystalline NiCoSx nanospheres derived from 2D NiCo-BDC-MeIM nanosheets arrays (lc-NCSx/C-NC-BM) grown on nickel foam were synthesized using a facile hydrothermal method for UOR and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). In contrast to the high-crystalline catalyst (hc-NCSx/C-NC-BM), the lc-NCSx/C-NC-BM possessed a multitude of unsaturated coordination sites with disordered atomic arrangements, thereby enhancing reactant adsorption, accelerating ion diffusion and facilitating charge transfer. Leveraging these characteristics, the as-prepared lc-NCSx/C-NC-BM demonstrated significantly enhanced UOR activity (E10/100= 1.2/1.33 V) and HER activity (E−10/−100= −65/−222 mV) in 1 M KOH and 0.5 M urea solution. This study presents a rational approach for synthesizing low-crystalline materials, which is crucial for efficient and stable hydrogen production by using urea-containing wastewater.

中文翻译：

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组装低结晶三相 NiCoSx 纳米球，通过尿素电解高效产氢


非常需要设计用于尿素氧化反应（UOR）的高性能电催化剂，该催化剂可用于从含尿素水中生产氢气，尽管这仍然是一个重大挑战。在这项研究中，使用一种简便的水热方法合成了由生长在泡沫镍上的 2D NiCo-BDC-MeIM 纳米片阵列 (lc-NCSx/C-NC-BM) 衍生的低结晶 NiCoSx 纳米球，用于 UOR 和析氢反应 (HER) 。与高结晶催化剂（hc-NCSx/C-NC-BM）相比，lc-NCSx/C-NC-BM拥有大量原子排列无序的不饱和配位点，从而增强反应物吸附，加速离子扩散并促进电荷转移。利用这些特性，所制备的 lc-NCSx/C-NC-BM 表现出显着增强的 UOR 活性 (E10/100= 1.2/1.33 V) 和 HER 活性 (E−10/−100= −65/−222 mV)在 1 M KOH 和 0.5 M 尿素溶液中。这项研究提出了一种合成低结晶材料的合理方法，这对于利用含尿素废水高效稳定地生产氢气至关重要。