Bifunctional Mn-doped CoSe2 nanonetworks electrode for hybrid alkali/acid electrolytic H2 generation and glycerol upgrading

• Published in: Journal of energy chemistry Vol. 72; pp. 424 - 431
• Main Authors: Fan, Linfeng, Ji, Yaxin, Wang, Genxiang, Zhang, Zhifang, Yi, Luocai, Chen, Kai, Liu, Xi, Wen, Zhenhai
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 01.09.2022
• Subjects: Bifunctional electrocatalytic electrode; Glycerol upgrading electrooxidation; Hybrid flow alkali/acid electrolyzer; Hydrogen production; Mn-doped CoSe2 nanonetworks; Glycerol upgrading electrooxidation; Mn-doped CoSe2 nanonetworks; Hydrogen production; Bifunctional electrocatalytic electrode; Hybrid flow alkali/acid electrolyzer
• ISSN: 2095-4956
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2022.04.027

An energy-efficient flow hybrid alkali/acid electrolyzer that can produces dual value-added products through acidic hydrogen production and alkaline glycerol upgrading was implemented by developing an efficient bifunctional electrode. [Display omitted] Electrolytic water splitting, as a promising route to hydrogen (H2) production, is still confronted with the sluggish anodic oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and its less value-added O2 production. Herein, we report a bifunctional electrode fabricated by in situ growth of Mn-doped CoSe2 nanonetworks on carbon fiber cloth (Mn-CoSe2/CFC), which shows attractive electrocatalytic properties toward glycerol oxidation reaction (GOR) in alkali and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in acid. A flow alkali/acid hybrid electrolytic cell (fA/A-hEC) was then developed by coupling anodic GOR with cathodic HER with the Mn-CoSe2/CFC bifunctional electrode. Such fA/A-hEC enables a rather low voltage of 0.54 V to achieve 10 mA cm−2, and maintain long-term electrolysis stability over 300-h operation at 100 mA cm−2 with Faraday efficiencies of over 99% for H2 and 90% for formate production. The designed bifunctional electrode in such innovative fA/A-hEC device provides insightful guidance for coupling energy-efficient hydrogen production with biomass upgradation.