Date of Graduation

5-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Chemistry

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Chemistry & Biochemistry

Advisor/Mentor

Chen, Jingyi

Abstract

The development of highly active and affordable catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction is crucial to achieve a future where hydrogen is generated cleanly using renewable methods. Ni-Fe nanocatalysts show great promise in this area, as they are affordable and highly active. However, to overcome the industrial dominance of steam methane reforming, their activity needs improvement. This work aims to increase the activity of Ni-Fe nanocatalysts by making hollow nanostructures. Hollow Ni-Fe nanostructures were synthesized by coating a Cu template with Ni and Fe, followed by the etching of the Cu template. This left hollow Ni-Fe nanoshells, which were used as catalysts in the oxygen evolution reaction. It was found that the preferred synthesis pathway involved coating Cu templates first with Ni, followed by coating with Fe. This synthesis pathway produced uniform, clearly defined shells with a thickness of 4.8 ± 0.8 nm. These hollow nanoshells reached a peak current density of 9.3 mA cm-2 in the oxygen evolution reaction. Their current density is roughly an order of magnitude less than their solid counterparts, which reached a peak current density of 78.1 mA cm-2. These results indicate that further improvements in the etching and coating processes are needed.

Keywords

Electrocatalysis; Water splitting; Transition Metal Catalysts

Download

Share

COinS