Direct Urea/H₂O₂ Fuel Cell with a Hierarchical Porous Nanoglass Anode for High-Efficiency Energy Conversion

Area of Science:

• Electrochemistry
• Materials Science
• Sustainable Energy

Background:

• Direct urea/H2O2 fuel cells (DUFCs) offer a sustainable method for wastewater treatment and energy generation.
• Developing efficient anode materials for the urea oxidation reaction (UOR) in DUFCs remains a significant challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel, efficient, and scalable anode material for DUFCs.
• To investigate the performance of a Ni-P hierarchical porous nanoglass (HPNG) electrode for UOR and its application in DUFCs.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of Ni-P hierarchical porous nanoglass (HPNG) electrodes using electrodeposition.
• Electrochemical characterization of the HPNG electrode for UOR performance.
• Integration of the HPNG electrode into a DUFC system to evaluate its energy conversion efficiency.

Main Results:

• The HPNG electrode demonstrated exceptional UOR performance with a potential of 1.330 V at 10 mA cm⁻² and a low Tafel slope of 9.77 mV dec⁻¹.
• The enhanced performance is attributed to the high-energy state and large surface area of the nanoglass material within the 3D hierarchical porous structure.
• The DUFC system utilizing the HPNG anode achieved a peak power density of 38.15 mW cm⁻² with 0.5 M urea.

Conclusions:

• The developed Ni-P HPNG electrode represents a significant advancement in anode materials for DUFCs.
• The study confirms the feasibility of scalable HPNG electrode production for practical bifunctional energy conversion applications.
• This work contributes to the advancement of DUFC technology for sustainable wastewater management and clean energy production.