Single step synthesis of porous NiCoO₂ for effective electrooxidation of glycerol in alkaline medium

Herein, we report the electrooxidation of glycerol in alkaline media in presence of highly active and durable NiCoO₂ catalyst synthesized using single step solution combustion synthesis (SCS) and compare its activity with NiO and Co₃O₄ prepared using the same method. X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with EDS and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) along with EDS elemental/phase mapping were used to analyze the crystallinity, morphology and phase composition of the synthesized particles. TEM image with phase mapping confirms the existence of mixed NiCoO₂ and these materials shows enhanced performance when compared with individual metal oxides. The onset potential of NiCoO₂ is much lower and the oxidation current density obtained is relatively higher. More importantly, the current density and stability of NiCoO₂ obtained from chronoamperometry makes it a promising catalyst for glycerol based fuel cells.