Facile fabrication of CuScS2/CoO as an efficient electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution reaction and water treatment process

A major issue is the production of green and sustainable energy while the development of an effective, affordable, readily available with a higher rate of oxygen and hydrogen evo-lution reactions is need of the time. Here in present work, we fabricated CuScS2, CoO, and CuScS2/CoO to replace the extremely expensive Pt/C and IrO2 that are employed as the benchmark materials for water electrolysis. We have also investigated their electro-chemical performance in an alkaline environment for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). The CuScS2/CoO nanocomposite is more effective electrode material than CuScS2 and CoO. The composite material shows smaller overpotential (179 mV) and reduced Tafel slope (46 mV dec-1) value than individual materials to attain a current density of 10 mA cm-2. The better efficiency of the composite material is due to well-distinct good shape with greater BET surface area, and relatively small resistance to charge transfer. Furthermore, the CuScS2/CoO exhibits remarkable electrocatalytic as well as photocatalytic performance in comparison to CuScS2 and CoO. This research provides a valuable guide for developing an OER electrocatalyst in an alkaline medium and shows better electrochemical as well as photocatalytic performance of CuScS2/CoO nanomaterials.(c) 2023 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.