Nickel Coated Paper Electrode Constructed by Interfacial Electrodeposition for Biomass Upgrading at Industrial Current Density

Abstract

Substituting the kinetically slow oxygen evolution reaction (OER) with biomass electrooxidation significantly decreases the energy demand of water electrolysis. However, exploring and optimizing efficient electrocatalysts remains a challenge for large−scale production of valuable chemicals and hydrogen. Herein, we have constructed a nickel coated paper electrode (NiCo@Ni/CP) composed of crystalline Ni metal and amorphous NiCo hydroxide nanosheets layers via interfacial electrodeposition on carbon paper (CP) for monosaccharide oxidation reactions (MOR), which achieved a formate yield of 82.4%. Remarkably, the flow electrolyzer maintained an industrial−grade current density of 1 A cm−2 at 1.70 V with exceptional stability over 100 h, also displaying significant co−generation Faradaic efficiencies of approximately 80.0% and 97.3% for formate and hydrogen production, respectively. The superior performance is attributed to the redistribution of electrons at the Ni and amorphous NiCo hydroxide interface, which enhances charge transfer and reactant adsorption by adjusting the d−band center, hence reducing deprotonation and C−C bond cleavage energies of xylose during MOR. This work provides a promising strategy for the design of efficient catalysts for biomass upgrading and the production of hydrogen at high current densities.

Keywords: Nickel coated paper electrode, electrodeposition, monosaccharides electrooxidation, industrial current density, Hydrogen production