Original Research Paper Carbon nanotubes immobilized copper(salen) nanocomposite for electrochemical oxygen evolution reaction

Abstract

An efficient oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts are widely required in the realm of water electrolysis and rechargeable metal-air batteries. This work describes an easy and simple method for the synthesis of copper salen (Cu(Salen))-functionalized multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) nanocomposite materials (Cu(Salen)/MWCNTs). It was used for OER in the basic medium (0.1 M KOH). The resulting nanocomposite, Cu(Salen)/MWCNTs, was studied using spectroscopic and microscopic techniques. For example, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), UV-visible spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction (p-XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX). The electrochemical characterization of prepared Cu(Salen)/MWCNTs nanocomposite based modified glassy carbon (GC) electrodes (GC/Cu(Salen)/MWCNTs) and their application towards OER were performed using an electrochemical method. The Tafel slope of nanocomposite material is 159.6 mv/dec in 0.1 M KOH solution, indicating that GC/Cu(Salen)/MWCNTs could be a promising and cost-effective electrode material for the OER. This study demonstrates a novel way for creating an active nanocomposite catalyst for OER in alkaline media.