Enhancement of hydrogen and oxygen evolution through durable water splitting using CoTiO3 perovskite as a bifunctional electrocatalyst

Abstract

The production of hydrogen as a clean energy source through water splitting is one of the essential steps to deal with the problems of global warming. Here, we present a novel approach utilizing iron (Fe) screw pitch cylindrical electrodes coated with cobalt titanate (CoTiO₃) perovskite nanoparticles, which was synthesized using a microwave-assisted wet chemical method. The Fe screw pitch of electrode mitigates bubble accumulation on electrode surfaces due to the sharp edges. Hence, electro-catalytic activity is enhanced by using coated CoTiO₃ nanoparticles on its electrode surface. Notably, low overpotentials of 66 mV and 77 mV are required for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER), respectively, to achieve a current density of 10 mA/cm², and low Tafel slopes of 34.81 mV/dec and 31.73 mV/dec are obtained for HER and OER, respectively. Impressively, a hydrogen conversion efficiency of 61.27% is obtained over 500 h of electrochemical water splitting with minimal fluctuation (± 5%). These findings demonstrate a promising avenue for the mass production of hydrogen energy, using earth available materials, and assure high current density and long-term durability for industrial applications.