Accelerated service life test of electrodeposited NiSn coatings as bifunctional hydrogen and oxygen evolution catalysts for alkaline water electrolysis

Abstract

Electrodeposited NiSn alloy coatings were tested for application as cathodes and anodes in the cell for alkaline water electrolysis in 30 wt.% KOH at 80 ºC. The "accelerated service life test" (ASLT) was performed for HER and OER reactions, and compared to those for Ni electrode. The morphology and chemical compositions of the NiSn and Ni coatings were investigated by SEM and EDS, while their surface composition was investigated by XPS before and after the ASLT for both reactions, respectively. It was shown that the cell voltage at j = 0.3 A cm-2 saving with the NiSn electrodes amounts to about 435 mV before and about 304 mV after the ASLT. SEM results showed that no changes in the morphology of as prepared samples could be detected after the ASLTs for both reactions. EDS and XPS analysis confirmed that some changes occurred during the ASLT, particularly for the oxygen content in the surface layer. This work was financially supported by Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development Republic of Serbia, under Contract No. 172054. he authors would like to acknowledge networking support by the COST Action MP1407.