Monolithic nanoporous NiFe alloy by dealloying laser processed NiFeAl as electrocatalyst toward oxygen evolution reaction

Abstract In this paper, monolithic nanoporous Ni Fe electrocatalyst is developed by dealloying a Ni Fe Al alloy, fabricated by a laser-based manufacturing method, as the electrocatalyst toward oxygen evolution reaction (OER). The nanoporous Ni Fe alloy displays an improved electrochemical performance by exhibiting an OER current density of 100 mA/cm 2 at 442 mV overpotential in the 1 M KOH aqueous solution, which is better than that of laser processed bulk Ni Fe alloy (464 mV). The structures, crystallinities, and chemical compositions of the nanoporous Ni Fe electrocatalyst are characterized by SEM, XRD and EDXS. With an activity comparable to the electrocatalysts reported to date, the monolithic nanoporous Ni Fe electrodes are also highly flexible in mechanical configurations, due to the combined advantages of both laser and dealloying processes, which provide new options for OER electrode design.