Nickel based electrospun materials with tuned morphology and composition

Abstract

Nickel is set to play a crucial role to substitute the less-abundant platinum in clean electrochemical energy conversion and storage devices and catalysis. The controlled design of Ni nanomaterials is essential to fine-tune their properties to match these applications. A systematic study of electrospinning and thermal post-treatment parameters has been performed to synthesize Ni materials and tune their morphology (fibers, ribbons, and sponge-like structures) and composition (metallic Ni, NiO, Ni/C, Ni3N and their combinations). The obtained Ni-based spun materials have been characterized by scanning and transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and thermogravimetric analysis. The possibility of upscaling and the versatility of electrospinning open the way to large-scale production of Ni nanostructures, as well as bi- and multi-metal systems for widened applications.