electrochemical transformation of Ni to NiOOH as an effective electrode for water oxidation reaction.

The poor kinetic background with the four-electron transfer of the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) was eradicated using a nickel-based catalyst, which was identified as an alternative to noble-metal catalysts. Here, we report the simple formation of an earth-abundant nickel oxyhydroxide (NiOOH) electrocatalyst for efficient OER in an alkaline medium. Electroless material preparation, namely, the direct modification of a gas diffusion layer (GDL) with a nickel salt, was studied, and the layered oxyhydroxide phase was found to influence the rate of the OER.