Metallurgically prepared NiCu alloys as cathode materials for hydrogen evolution reaction

NiCu bimetallic alloys with Cu content of 5, 10, 20, 30 and 50 wt% are prepared by powder metallurgy method, which consisted of powder mixing, pressing and sintering processes. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurement confirms that all the five NiCu alloys possess the f.c.c. structure. The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity of the prepared NiCu alloy electrodes was studied in 6 M KOH solution by cathodic current-potential curves and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) techniques. It was found that the electrocatalytic activity for the HER depended on the composition of NiCu alloys, where Ni10Cu alloy exhibited considerably higher HER activity than Ni plate and other NiCu alloys, indicative of its chemical composition related intrinsic activity.