Ferric hydroxide/NiCo-MOF composite materials as efficient electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction

Due to the depletion of renewable energy sources, clean hydrogen energy has become one of the most popular new energy sources. One of the means to improve hydrogen production efficiency is to increase the rate of oxygen evolution of electrolytic water. Here, we prepared a metal-organic framework (MOF) through a simple hydrothermal reaction. Fe(OH)(3) was prepared on the surface of NiCo-MOF by a rapid phenol-iron reaction using the hydroxyl site of the MOF. The obtained Fe(OH)(3)/NiCo-MOF has excellent oxygen evolution performance, and it is noteworthy that the electrocatalytic activity of NiCo-MOF is significantly improved by the introduction to Fe atoms. The Tafel slope of Fe(OH)(3)/NiCo-MOF (45 mV Dec(-1)) is about 70% lower than that of NiCo-MOF(148 mV Dec(-1)). This work provides a new strategy for the design and preparation of excellent MOF composite materials and thus provides new ideas and approaches for the preparation of other energy conversion and storage materials.