Construction of heterostructured CuO–Co3O4 catalyst for hydrogen evolution from ammonia borane hydrolysis

Hydrogen offers advantages such as being environmentally friendly, renewable, widely available, and capable of meeting the demands of sustainable social development. Therefore, designing and constructing high-performance and cost-effective catalysts for hydrogen evolution from ammonia borane hydrolysis represents a key research focus. Herein, the heterostructured CuO–Co₃O₄ catalysts were designed by chemical etching of ZIF-67 following calcination. The morphology and structure of catalysts were controlled by adjusting the Cu source and solvent during the chemical etching. The incorporation of Cu into catalysts significantly enhanced the catalytic activity for hydrogen generation. The turnover frequency (TOF) of CuO–Co₃O₄ catalyst was 7.85 min⁻¹ at 298 K, and the activation energy (E_a) of the hydrogen release reaction was 43.64 kJ mol⁻¹. The prepared catalyst also exhibited the excellent cycling stability. The synergistic interaction between Co and Cu played a pivotal role and the activation of both H₂O and NH₃BH₃ molecules was enhanced. This work provides a novel pathway for developing low-cost and high-performance catalysts for ammonia borane hydrolysis.