Polyaniline-encapsulated NiFe layered double hydroxide electrocatalyst for robust water oxidation
Fengming Zhang1, Filip Ublekov2, Yue Li1
1Key Laboratory of Advanced Energy Materials Chemistry (Ministry of Education), Engineering Research Center of High-efficiency Energy Storage (Ministry of Education), Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter (Ministry of Education), College of Chemistry, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China. nkyu2023@nankai.edu.cn.
Chemical Communications (Cambridge, England)
|February 11, 2026
Summary
Polyaniline encapsulation enhances nickel-iron hydroxide catalysts for efficient oxygen evolution. This strategy prevents metal leaching and degradation, ensuring long-term stability in electrocatalysis.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Electrochemistry
- Catalysis
Background:
- Nickel-iron (NiFe) hydroxides are promising electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER).
- However, their practical application is limited by metal leaching and structural instability during OER.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a strategy for enhancing the stability and efficiency of NiFe hydroxide electrocatalysts for OER.
- To investigate the role of polyaniline encapsulation in preventing catalyst degradation.
Main Methods:
- A polyaniline-encapsulation method was employed to coat NiFe hydroxide nanoparticles.
- Electrocatalytic performance and stability of the encapsulated catalysts were evaluated using electrochemical techniques.
- Mechanisms of metal leaching and structural degradation were studied.
Main Results:
- Polyaniline encapsulation effectively suppressed metal leaching from NiFe hydroxide.
- The encapsulated catalysts exhibited significantly improved structural integrity during OER.
- Enhanced and stable electrocatalytic activity for oxygen evolution was achieved.
Conclusions:
- Polyaniline encapsulation is a viable strategy to create robust and efficient NiFe hydroxide electrocatalysts.
- This approach overcomes key limitations of NiFe hydroxides, enabling their long-term use in oxygen evolution applications.
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