Ni-Foam Layered Double Hydroxide Electrocatalysts for Fuel Cells

Sean P. Rogers¹, Matthew DiBiase¹, Thomas Gascoigne¹, Jiangtian Li², Rongzhong Jiang², Deryn Chu^2*, Enoch A. Nagelli^1*

¹Department of Chemistry & Life Science, Chemical Engineering Program, United States Military Academy, West Point, New York 10996

²U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, Army Research Laboratory

2800 Powder Mill Rd., Adelphi, MD 20783-1107

Fuel cells are an efficient and environmentally clean renewable energy technology in various applications such as portable power devices, vehicle propulsion, and stationary energy generation. However, fuel cells rely on expensive catalysts such as Pt and IrO₂ for electrolysis to produce H₂ and O₂ gas necessary. Despite exceptional efficiency of these catalysts, the high costs of catalysts prevent more industry-wide scale up and production. To address this challenge, we synthesized and characterize three-dimensional nickel foams, with layered double hydroxide, as an alternative, cheaper catalyst. These nickel-based foams were synthesized with hydrothermal synthesis and electrodeposition techniques. Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Raman Spectroscopy is used to confirm the presence of the layered double hydroxides with nickel. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and cyclic voltammetry (CV) were used to characterize surface morphology, surface elemental composition, and the electrochemical surface area, respectively.

KEYWORDS: Fuel Cells, Proton Exchange Membrane, 3D Ni foams, Layered Double Hydroxide

CONTACT: Dr. Enoch A. Nagelli, Email: enoch.nagelli@westpoint.edu; Dr. Deryn Chu, Email: deryn.d.chu.civ@mail.mil ,