Scalable synthesis of NiFe-layered double hydroxide for efficient anion exchange membrane electrolysis

Seijas-Da Silva A, Hartert A, Oestreicher V, Romero J, Jaramillo-Hernández C, Muris LJ, Thorez G, Vieira BJ, Ducourthial G, Fiocco A, Legendre S, Huck-Iriart C, Mizrahi M, López-Alcalá D, Freiberg AT, Mayrhofer KJ, Waerenborgh JC, Baldoví JJ, Cherevko S, Varela M, Thiele S, Lloret V, Abellán G (2025)

Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2025

Journal

Nature Communications Nature Publishing Group: Nature Communications

Book Volume: 16

Article Number: 6138

Journal Issue: 1

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-61356-2

Abstract

The alkaline oxygen evolution reaction is a key step in producing green hydrogen through water electrolysis, but its large-scale industrial application remains limited due to challenges with current electrocatalysts—particularly in terms of scalability, efficiency, and long-term stability. Here we show an industrially scalable synthesis of an active NiFe layered double hydroxide (NiFe-LDH) catalyst using a room-temperature, atmospheric-pressure route. The process involves homogeneous alkalinization, where chloride ions nucleophilically attack an epoxide ring, producing a low-dimensional, defect-rich NiFe-LDH with pronounced iron clustering. In-situ spectroscopy and ab-initio calculations reveal that these structural features maximize the conversion of the NiFe-LDH to the catalytic active phase and minimize the energy barrier, improving catalytic efficiency. When used as the anode in an anion exchange membrane water electrolyzer operating at 70 °C, our material delivers 1 A cm⁻² at 1.69 V in a 5 cm2 full-cell setup, with notable durability compared to conventional NiFe-LDHs. This scalable approach could considerably lower the cost of green hydrogen production by enabling more efficient alkaline electrolyzers.

Involved external institutions

University of València / Universitat de València ES Spain (ES) Forschungszentrum Jülich / Research Centre Jülich (FZJ) DE Germany (DE) Instituto Superior Técnico PT Portugal (PT) HORIBA Jobin Yvon SAS FR France (FR) National University of La Plata / Universidad Nacional de La Plata (UNLP) AR Argentina (AR) Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM) ES Spain (ES)

How to cite

APA:

Seijas-Da Silva, A., Hartert, A., Oestreicher, V., Romero, J., Jaramillo-Hernández, C., Muris, L.J.,... Abellán, G. (2025). Scalable synthesis of NiFe-layered double hydroxide for efficient anion exchange membrane electrolysis. Nature Communications, 16(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61356-2

MLA:

Seijas-Da Silva, Alvaro, et al. "Scalable synthesis of NiFe-layered double hydroxide for efficient anion exchange membrane electrolysis." Nature Communications 16.1 (2025).

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