Noble-metal-free CuNi/Co3O4 hybrid nanosheets as efficient and magnetically recyclable catalysts for hydrolysis of ammonia borane

The development of inexpensive and high-performance catalysts is a hot topic in the field of catalytic hydrolysis of ammonia borane (AB). In this work, a series of CuNi bimetallic nanoparticles (NPs) anchored on Co3O4 with magnetic properties was fabricated via impregnation reduction method. Befitting from the synergistic effect between Cu and Ni species and the strong interactions between the bimetallic NPs and the supporting substrate, the as-prepared CuNi/Co3O4 catalyst (with a bimetallic loading weight of 6.2 wt% and the mole ratio of Cu:Ni is 1:1) affords a high hydrogen generation rate of 11,846.9 mL min−1 g−1 with a total turnover frequency (TOF) value of 31.5 molH2 molmetal−1 min−1 0.14 M NaOH medium at 298 K. Besides, this catalyst also exhibits good magnetic separability. These results indicate that cobalt oxide has good application prospects in the field of AB hydrolysis, which may provide a promising lead for the construction of other efficient heterogeneous catalysts for industrial applications in energy and environmental fields.