Características cinéticas de la reacción de desprendimiento de hidrógeno en el electrodo de aleación Ni-Fe

Abstract

In the last decades new energy systems have been researched to replace the old fossil hydrocarbon system. The hydrogen-solar system seems to be more interesting and more economic than others. The electrolysis is one of the most promising methods to produce hydrogen in an economical way and without sophisticated equipment. Nevertheless, problems related to the cathode activation started to be tackled intensively not earlier than about 15 years ago. One of the main goals in the study of electrode materials is the achievement of the so-called synergetic effect. Many studies showed that the Ni-Fe alloy has this synergetic effect. In this paper some experimental results obtained for production and characterization of Ni-Fe alloy for the hydrogen evolution reaction are shown. Particular emphasis is given to the calculation of kinetic parameters as the Tafel´s slope, the activation energy for the electrode process and the surface characteristics of the electrodes. The Ni/ Fe electrodes were produced by electrolytic method in an acetate acid bath without copper ions. The surface characteristics were studied by Disperse Energy of X Ray and Scan Electron Microscopy. The results showed that these electrodes have better electrocatalytic behavior than a traditional Fe electrode.