Hydrotalcite‐Based Electrocatalyst for Methanol Oxidation Reaction as an Alternative to Oxygen Evolution Reaction

Methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) is getting research attention as an alternative to the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) due to its fast reaction and low required potential. Herein, hydrotalcite‐derived Ni–Al mixed metal oxides with intended molar ratios of 0.8/0.2, 0.6/0.6, and 0.8/0.4 are prepared for MOR applications. The catalysts were fully physico‐chemically characterized regarding their structure, texture, and redox properties. The materials showed high surface area and were active for MOR. However, among the as‐prepared catalysts, the material with high NiO dispersion showed an excellent response for MOR. In an optimized electrolyte of 1 M KOH and 2 M methanol, the best catalyst achieved a maximum current density of 32.35 mA cm ⁻² , at an overpotential of 0.7 V versus Ag/AgCl, with a Tafel slope of 36.8 mV dec ⁻¹ . The catalyst also exhibited an electrochemically active surface area (ESCA) of 0.552 cm ² and stability of 5000 s. The excellent electrocatalytic performance of the Ni _0.8 Al _0.2 ‐O _x catalyst demonstrates that the hydrotalcite‐derived Ni–Al mixed oxides have the potential to be one of the cost‐effective and efficient electrocatalysts for methanol oxidation.