Improvement of the performance of hydrazine fuel cells without immobilization of ink catalysts on the membrane: a new electrocatalyst of mixed metal oxides as cathode and nickel foam-based Ni–Co nanoparticles as anode

One of the important challenges in fuel cells with polymer membranes is the stabilization of electrocatalytic inks on the membrane. To solve this issue, scientists are looking for the deposition of electrocatalysts on a suitable substrate with a high surface area. In this regard, nickel foam is ideal for the alkaline part of fuel cells (anode) and titanium is as a substrate for their acidic part (cathode). In this study, the bimetallic Ni–Co nanoparticles on a Ni foam (NF) template that is coated with reduced graphene oxides (rGO/NF) are fabricated by electrodeposition to be used as an anode and a mixture of metal oxides of IrO₂–Ta₂O₅–SiO₂ on Ti substrate is prepared by the sol–gel procedure to be applied as a cathode electrocatalyst in direct hydrazine-hydrogen peroxide fuel cells (DHzHPFCs). Characterization by synthesis of electrocatalysts is performed using FE-SEM, EDS, and XRD. The electrocatalytic behavior of the synthesized anodic catalyst is studied toward the oxidation of hydrazine in a three-electrode system. In this research, for the first time, IrO₂–Ta₂O₅–SiO₂/Ti as a cathode and Ni-Co/rGO/NF as an anode have been used for DHzHPFCs. The open-circuit potential of 1.80 V and a maximum power density value of 187 mW cm⁻² at 55 °C are achieved for the synthesized catalysts. The results of this research show that these electrodes could be excellent and commercial candidates for hydrazine fuel cells.