Al₂O₃-Assisted Hierarchical Ni–Al Surface Alloying for Scalable Fabrication of Nano-Roughened Ni Foam Cathodes with Superior HER Activity and Durability in Alkaline Water Electrolysis

Key Points

• The aim is to improve hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity and durability of Ni foam cathodes in alkaline water electrolysis.
• Utilized Al₂O₃-assisted surface alloying technique
• Fabricated hierarchical Ni–Al structures on nickel foam
• Evaluated electrochemical performance under alkaline conditions
• Achieved significantly higher electrochemically active surface area (ECSA)
• Improved HER kinetics observed in tested cathodes
• Demonstrated enhanced durability over extended operational periods