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Abstract
Electrocatalytic methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) holds significant value in the chemical industry, as it enables the treatment of methanol-containing wastewater and promotes hydrogen production from water. This study investigates a strategy based on tuning-composition of metal elements to optimize MOR performance, aiming to outperform the current cost-effective and efficient catalysts. To this end, nickel hydroxide and iron oxyhydroxide heterostructures were synthesized through a facile hydrothermal routine, and the catalytic performance of three different Ni/Fe ratios in MOR was examined in alkaline media. Among them, the material with equal Ni/Fe ratio exhibited the best catalytic activity, maintaining a high current density of ~66 mA cm−2 at 1.5 V vs. RHE in 1 M KOH electrolyte with 1 M methanol. Moreover, this developed electrode showed a Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 98.5% for formate production within a continuous 12 h test. Furthermore, density function theory (DFT) calculation was applied to unravel the methanol-to-formate conversion mechanism that was enhanced by the proper Ni/Fe ratio. These results demonstrate the high efficiency and selectivity of efficient methanol-to-formate conversion on NiFe-based materials, providing a promising a non-precious catalyst for electrocatalytic upgrading methanol to value-added formate.
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