High performance of Au nanothorns supported on Ni foam substrate as the catalyst for NaBH4 electrooxidation

Au NTs/Ni foam electrode with the unique three dimensional network structure is prepared by one-step electrodeposition of thorn-like Au particles onto Ni foam surface without any additives. The morphology of the electrode and distribution of Au on Ni foam surfaces are characterized by scanning electron microscope and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer. The structure is analyzed using an X-ray diffractometer. The catalytic performance of electrode is evaluated by voltammetry and chronoamperometry. Au thorns display the corrugated appearance with the length of around 1 μm, and the diameter of hundreds of nanometers, even down to several nanometers. Electrochemical measurements reveal that the as-prepared electrode exhibits excellent catalytic performance and good stability for NaBH4 electrooxidation. A limiting current density of 1155 mA cm−2 at −0.16 V in the solution of 2.0 mol L−1 NaOH +0.1 mol L−1 NaBH4 was also successfully achieved, which is much higher than that on the other representative Au electrodes and even higher than Pt nanoparticles reported previously.