Highly performed tungsten trioxide-polyaniline composite thin film and their accelerated oxygen evolution electrocatalyst activity

The low-cost and efficient catalyst for the oxygen evolution process is used in a variety of energy storage and conversion devices. In this work, a hydrothermal technique with only one step is used to incorporate a thin layer of WO₃ onto PANI. When exposed to the oxygen evolution process in 1 M KOH solution, this film demonstrates excellent electrocatalytic activity and durability. Higher current densities for OERs of 50 mAcm-2 and 100 mAcm⁻² are confirmed at overpotentials of 289 mV and 302 mV, respectively, with the enhanced WO₃-PANI. To generate 10 mAcm⁻², just 254 mV of overpotential is required. Low polarization resistance and swift kinetics through electrode–electrolyte contact are indicated by the WO₃-PANI's low charge transfer resistance (R_ct) value. The surface area expands as a result of PANI integration, increasing the number of exposed active spots for OER activity. It also shows excellent stability in a controlled electrolysis experiment for 24 h without a noticeable change in OER activity. WO₃ and PANI are considered to be the main contributors to the extremely active and stable because of their combined abilities to decrease the adsorption energies of intermediates, induce lattice distortion into the crystalline morphology of WO₃, and preserve a high lattice oxygen content. This study presents a simple synthetic technique to produce highly functional, affordable, and binder-free electrocatalysts.