Palm Leaf Waste-to-Hydrogen Conversion via Modified Graphene Oxide-Supported Ni–Co Electrocatalyst
ISEF · 2026 Materials Science
Overview
The transition to a clean energy is limited by the high cost of green hydrogen production, relying ?on expensive noble metals electrocatalysts. This creates supply chain risks and restricts large-?scale deployment. Also, large amounts of unused palm leaf waste posing an environmental ?challenge. Solving these two issues, this work aims to convert palm leaf carbon source to a cost-?effective and sustainable graphene oxide (GO) nanosheets loaded with Ni/Co as an ?electrocatalyst for hydrogen production via electrochemical water splitting. GO were synthesized ?from palm through pyrolysis and hydrothermal oxidation, then used as a conductive support for ?Ni/Co nanocomposites prepared at different ratios (2:1, 1:1, 1:2). The catalysts were evaluated ?for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in acidic (0.5 M H2SO4) and in alkaline (1 M KOH) ?media. Structural and morphological analyses (SEM, TEM, XRD, and FTIR) confirmed uniform ?dispersion of Ni/Co on GO. Electrochemical testing revealed that Ni/Co (1:1)-GO electrode ?exhibited superior performance with lowest overpotential, and charge transfer resistance. ?Quantifying the output, ˜1.5L of H2 was produced over 24h using small cell with 90% activity, ?demonstrating high stability. ? Enhanced performance is explained by synergistic Ni/Co-GO interactions, increasing active sites ?and accelerates electron transfer. With 1:1 optimal ratio, Ni is best at splitting water, and Co ?facilitates optimal hydrogen adsorption for hydrogen binding, that accelerates the overall ?hydrogen evolution kinetics. The work demonstrates a scalable waste-to-material strategy for ?efficient, low-cost H2 production, advancing sustainable energy technologies.? Keywords: Waste-to-value conversion, Green hydrogen, Prototype, Sustainability ?
Competition history
- ISEF 2026
Resources
Related projects
ISEF · 2021
Cost-effective Green Hydrogen Production: Single-step Synthesis of Nickel Cobaltite Nanostructures Electrode
ISEF · 2025
Increasing Green Hydrogen Production Accessibility: Derived Magnetite Nanosheets on Nickel Foam as a Highly Active Electrocatalyst for Oxygen Evolution
ISEF · 2023
Bi-Functional MOF-Based Electrocatalyst for Efficient and Cost-Effective Hydrogen Production From Seawater
ISEF · 2026
Development of a Novel Solution Using a Multi Catalyst Process to Lower the Activation Energy to Produce Clean Hydrogen
Closest projects by meaning, across every fair and year in the corpus.
Source: Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair