Study on oxygen evolution reaction efficiency demonstrated by Ce-E (E = S, Se and te) electrocatalyst

The strategy of generating sustainable energy with hydrogen fuel is highly significant and promising. Hydrogen fuel being non-toxic proves beneficial for the environment and can be produced in a variety of ways, as industrial water splitting into oxygen and hydrogen is a crucial future plan. This study aims to investigate cerium-based chalcogens (CeS, CeSe, and CeTe), as a catalyst to broaden the family of highly effective OER electrocatalysts based on transition metal chalcogenides. CeTe on NF was found to exhibit lowest onset potential with an overpotential of 333 mV at 10 mAcm⁻² and a 51 mVdec⁻¹ Tafel value among CeE (E = S, Se) chalcogenides with comparable stoichiometry. Using different analyses, it was determined that CeTe had a large surface area of 83.7 m²g^-1, a cubic structure, and a highly crystalline nanoflakes morphology. High electrochemical surface area of 562 cm², small resistance as Rs of 1.12 Ω, and Rct 729 mΩ, along with high TOF value of 0.174 s⁻¹, 0.059 s⁻¹, 0.009 s⁻¹ for CeTe as compared to CeSe and CeS have supported by CV results. In particular, CeTe showed exceptional catalytic efficiency and was highly active and durable in oxygen evolution reactions.