Self-Organized One-Dimensional Cobalt Compound Nanostructures from CoC₂O₄ for Superior Oxygen Evolution Reaction

In this work, we reported that a self-organized cobalt oxalate (CoC₂O₄) with one-dimensional structures was applied to investigate the electrocatalytic behavior of an oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline media. The one-dimensional CoC₂O₄ structure was fabricated by a facile anodization process, i.e., reacting the Co metal surface with oxalate ions. The dense CoC₂O₄ nanowires were evenly distributed on the Co substrate. By thermal treatment, Co₃O₄ one-dimensional structures were easily formed from CoC₂O₄ structures. In addition, we confirmed that fabricated CoC₂O₄ could also be transformed to Co­(OH)₂ with one-dimensional structures via a spontaneous chemical reaction in alkaline, which serves better electrocatalytic performance for an OER.