Guangya Hou

A nanostructured nickel–cobalt alloy with an oxide layer for an efficient oxygen evolution reaction

A nanostructured nickel–cobalt alloy with an oxide layer was fabricated and its superior catalytic activity towards the electrochemical oxygen evolution reaction in alkaline media was investigated. Firstly, a NiCo–SiO2 composite film was prepared via a potentiostatic electro-codeposition method. Then the SiO2 template was etched and the NiCo component was activated leading to the generation of a NiCoOx layer during consecutive CV scans in concentrated alkaline solution. The results show that this nanostructured NiCo alloy with the oxide layer can provide a current density of 100 mA cm−2 in 1.0 M KOH at a low overpotential of 326 mV and exhibits good stability towards water oxidation. The excellent OER performance is enabled with the unique metal-oxide structure, which allows high electrical conductivity in the metal and high catalytic activity on the oxide.

Highly porous copper ferrite foam: A promising adsorbent for efficient removal of As(III) and As(V) from water

A novel copper ferrite foam fabricated on Fe-Ni foam substrate was synthesized via a simple hydrothermal method to efficiently remove arsenic from aqueous solution. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-Ray diffraction pattern (XRD) and Raman spectra were used to characterize the morphology and surface composition of the copper ferrite foam (CFF). The adsorption behavior of As(III) and As(V) onto this CFF is studied as a function of solution pH, temperature, contact time, and different concentrations. Results shown that this CFF has high adsorption capacity and excellent recyclability. Adsorption isotherms study indicates Langmuir model of adsorption. The maximum adsorption capability of As(III) and As(V) on CuFe2O4 foam is observed about 44.0 mg g-1 and 85.4 mg g-1, respectively. Regeneration experiment indicates that arsenic could be easily desorbed from CFF with 0.10 mol L-1 NaOH and the high adsorption capacity can be maintained for six regeneration cycle.