Development of Cu/NiCo multilayer coating with micro/nano hierarchical morphology for overall water splitting

The micro/nano hierarchical structured Cu/NiCo coating was prepared on the copper substrate by thetwo-step electrodeposition and introduced as a potential electrocatalyst to produce hydrogen and oxygengases through the electrochemical water splitting. The microstructure and chemical composition of theachieved coating was assessed by SEM-EDS. The results showed the formation of Cu micro cone arrays atthe first step of electrodeposition, followed by precipitation of the nano sized NiCo particles on these cones.According to EDS maps, there is a uniform distribution of Cu, Ni and Co element through the fabricatedcoating. The electrocatalytic activity of the Cu/NiCo coating was examined through the linear sweepvoltammetry and the results was compared to those of the base copper substrate and Cu layer. A combinationof the nano and micro sized crystals in the structure strongly decreased the require overpotential for thewater splitting. Consequently, the designed electrocatalyst is promising choice for future applications.

Keywords:

Micro/nano structure , Cu/NiCo coating , Electrocatalyst , Water splitting