Facile synthesis of Pd–Fe nanoparticles modified Ni foam electrode and its behaviors in electrochemical reduction of tetrabromobisphenol A

• A facile method was proposed to synthesize Pd–Fe/Ni electrode.
• Addition of CTAB resulted in smoother surface and better nanoparticles dispersion.
• Fe nanoparticles decreased interface impedance and accelerated electron transfer.
• Pd–Fe/Ni electrode showed excellent performance for TBBPA electrochemical reduction.

Pd–Fe nanoparticles modified Ni foam (Pd–Fe/Ni) electrode was synthesized via cathodic electrodeposition followed by impregnation deposition method. The Pd–Fe/Ni electrode was applied to electrochemical reduction of tetrabromobisphenol A. Results indicate that smoother surface of Pd–Fe/Ni electrode and better dispersion of nanoparticles were obtained by the addition of hexadecyl trimethyl ammonium bromide. Meanwhile, introduction of Fe nanoparticles into Pd/Ni electrode decreased the interface impedance and accelerated the rate of electron transfer on the electrode.