Urea Oxidation on Ni(OH)2-X(SO4)0.5x·yH2o / C-PVC Composite Electrodes

The structural and physical properties of α-Ni(OH)₂ materials have been studied because the great importance of this compound in catalysis and  for the development of high performance devices. Recently, research efforts have been focused on the synthesis of nanostructured nickel hydroxide with several morphologies [1]. It has been reported that electrodes modified with nickel species present a strong electrooxidation activity in front of organic compounds in alkaline medium [2].

The objective of this work was the preparation  of nanostructured Ni(OH)_2-x(SO₄)_0.5x·yH₂O by hydrothermal method and their characterization by XRD, IR, AFM and SEM. These nanopowders of nickel hydroxide were supported on C-PVC composite electrodes for their electrochemical characterization by cyclic and differential pulse voltammetry.

The Ni(OH)_2-x(SO₄)_0.5x·yH₂O/C-PVC electrode showed good eletrocatalytic activity in the oxidation of urea and high anodic current was observed during the reverse scan  (Figure 1).

Figure 1.Electrocatalytic response of Ni(OH)_2-x(SO₄)_0.5x·yH₂O/C-PVC electrode in absence (a) and presence of urea (b) in alkaline medium.

References

 [1] T. Gao, B. P. Jelle, J. Phys. Chem. C117 (2013)  17294−17302

[2] D. Wang, W. Yan, S. H. Vijapur, G. G. Botte, J. Power Sources217 (2012) 498-502

Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the financial support of VIEP- BUAP under project No.2014 and CONACyT by the scholarships to A. Romero-Morán.