Electrochemical deposition of Ni(OH)2 and Fe-doped Ni(OH)2 tubes

Arrays of Ni(OH)(2) and Fe-doped Ni(OH)(2) tubes were successfully prepared by electrochemical deposition in porous alumina membranes under ambient conditions. Extensive analysis of the tubes was carried out by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) equipped with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results show that the electrodeposition method yielded uniform Ni(OH)(2) and Fe-doped Ni(OH)(2) tubes with inner diameters of 150-180 nm, wall thicknesses of 20-30 nm, and lengths of about 60 pm. This template-based electrochemical deposition method can be extended to the synthesis of other similar materials such as micro- or nanotubes, -wires, and -rods. Furthermore, the Ni(OH)(2) and Fe-doped Ni(OH)(2) tubes may have promising applications in alkaline rechargeable batteries and electrocatalytic electrolysis for the production of hydrogen. (c) Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2005.