Cobalt Electrocatalyst on Fluorine Doped Carbon Cloth – a Robust and Partially Regenerable Anode for Water Oxidation

Abstract

The low stability of the electrocatalysts at water oxidation (WO) conditions and the use of expensive noble metals have obstructed large-scale H2 production from water. Herein, we report the electrocatalytic WO activity of a cobalt-containing, water-soluble molecular WO electrocatalyst [CoII(mcbp)(OH2)] (1) [mcbp2−=2,6-bis(1-methyl-4-(carboxylate)benzimidazol-2-yl)pyridine] in homogeneous conditions (overpotential of 510 mV at pH 7 phosphate buffer) and after anchoring it on pyridine-modified fluorine-doped carbon cloth (PFCC). The formation of cobalt phosphate was identified only after 4 h continuous oxygen evolution in homogeneous conditions. Interestingly, a significant enhancement of the stability and WO activity (current density of 5.4 mA/cm2 at 1.75 V) was observed for 1 after anchoring onto PFCC, resulting in a turnover (TO) of >3.6×103 and average TOF of 0.05 s−1 at 1.55 V (pH 7) over 20 h. A total TO of >21×103 over 8 days was calculated. The electrode allowed regeneration of∼ 85 % of the WO activity electrochemically after 36 h of continuous oxygen evolution.