Abstract: MH/Ni battery for electro-vehicle has become a hot topic of studies. The Co-Ce alloys were electrodeposited on the nickel substrate to modify pasted nickel electrode substrate. SEM and XRD results show that the surface of the substrate contains Co(OH)₂ and CoOOH film, and CV shows that modified film can improve electron conductivity capability. The state of charge (SOC) or state of discharge (SOD) curves indicate that Co-Ce modified substrate can enhance Ni electrode charge and discharge performance at high rate. The surface analysis by XPS shows that, the Co(Ⅱ)/Co(Ⅲ) ratio is 76.80/23.19 at the SOD, but the Co(Ⅱ)/Co(Ⅲ) ratio is 57.79/42.21 at the SOC, which indicates that the conductibility of electrodeposited Co-Ce alloys on the nickel substrate is enhanced because CoOOH and Co(OH)₂ are created on the substrate surface. The modified surface with CoOOH and Co(OH)₂ can enhance the conductibility of electrons between the substrate and active materials, and improve the high rate SOC and SOD ability.

Key words: nickel electrode; substrate modification; Co-Ce alloys; surface