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A Poly(cobaloxime)/Carbon Nanotube Electrode: Freestanding Buckypaper with Polymer-Enhanced H2-Evolution Performance.


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Authors

Reuillard, Bertrand  ORCID logo  https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9553-1773
Warnan, Julien 
Leung, Jane J 
Wakerley, David W 

Abstract

A freestanding H2-evolution electrode consisting of a copolymer-embedded cobaloxime integrated into a multiwall carbon nanotube matrix by π-π interactions is reported. This electrode is straightforward to assemble and displays high activity towards hydrogen evolution in near-neutral pH solution under inert and aerobic conditions, with a cobalt-based turnover number (TON(Co)) of up to 420. An analogous electrode with a monomeric cobaloxime showed less activity with a TON(Co) of only 80. These results suggest that, in addition to the high surface area of the porous network of the buckypaper, the polymeric scaffold provides a stabilizing environment to the catalyst, leading to further enhancement in catalytic performance. We have therefore established that the use of a multifunctional copolymeric architecture is a viable strategy to enhance the performance of molecular electrocatalysts.

Description

Keywords

buckypaper, cobaloximes, dihydrogen evolution, electrocatalysis, polymers, Electrodes, Hydrogen, Microscopy, Electron, Scanning, Nanotubes, Carbon, Organometallic Compounds, Polymers

Journal Title

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

1433-7851
1521-3773

Volume Title

55

Publisher

Wiley
Sponsorship
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/K039520/1)
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BB/K010220/1)
We acknowledge support by the Christian Doppler Research Association (Austrian Federal Ministry of Science, Research and Economy and National Foundation for Research, Technology and Development), the OMV Group, the EPSRC, the BBSRC (Grant BB/K010220/1) and the Woolf Fisher Trust in New Zealand and the Cambridge Trusts. We also thank the National EPSRC XPS User’s Service (NEXUS) at Newcastle University, UK.