ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Heterojunction interface engineering for stable and effective porous Fe₃O₄-ZnO nanocomposites: a highly efficient synergistic catalyst for oxygen evolution reaction

S. A. T. Shanmugapriya, Anand Kumar, Aniruddha Mondal, Mohd Afzal, and Sudip Mondal

Department of Chemistry, Government College of Engineering, Sengi Patti, Thanjavur, India

E-mail: aniruddhacsmcri@gmail.com

Received: 3 October 2023  Accepted: 21 February 2024

Abstract:

The development of renewable energy technologies, such as fuel cells and metal-air batteries, relies heavily on the availability of highly efficient electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). In this study, a mesoporous Fe₃O₄-ZnO nanocomposites was synthesized using a simple and economically viable approach at a relatively low temperature. The observed catalytic activity of the prepared Fe₃O₄-ZnO nanocomposites mesoporous nanostructure was found to be remarkable. Additionally, the nanostructure exhibited a high tolerance to methanol and demonstrated durability towards oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline media. In the course of the experiment, it was observed that the catalyst exhibited noteworthy activity in the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) when compared to the commercially available RuO₂ catalyst. This was evident through a more negative onset potential and higher current. The catalyst’s notable capacity for high oxygen reaction activity may potentially enhance the synergistic effect resulting from the combination of defect sites and the porous structure of Fe₃O₄-ZnO nanocomposites. The findings of this study indicate that the Fe₃O₄-ZnO nanocomposites exhibit promising attributes as an electrocatalyst with overpotential and Tafel slope value of 350 mV and 62 mVdec⁻¹ for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in real-world scenarios.

Keywords: Nanocomposites; Electrocatalyst; Oxygen evolution reaction; Heterojunction; ESCA

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.1007/s11696-024-03401-w

Chemical Papers 78 (8) 4699–4708 (2024)