From pseudocapacitive redox to intermediary adsorption in oxygen evolution reaction

The mechanism of oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is somehow related to that of the pseudocapacitance of metal oxide electrocatalysts in potentials lower than the OER standard potential. Although pseudocapacitance of metal oxide electrocatalysts is usually studied in the investigations of OER, this dependence is not profoundly inspected. During the pseudocapacitive behavior, some high valence cations are formed over a broad range of potential in an underpotential region before the formal redox potential. This is due to the exceptional activities of some sites, which are capable of further oxidation at the OER potential to form active sites for the OER electrocatalysis. Therefore, a well-defined pseudocapacitance is somehow a requirement for the OER performance. Almost all OER electrocatalysts reported in the literature display considerable pseudocapacitive behavior at the lower potentials. The corresponding pseudocapacitance explains the difference between the OER activities of IrO₂ and RuO₂. Here, the focus is on noble metals as the well-defined OER electrocatalysts, but the reasoning can be extended to other metal oxides. The electrochemical behaviors including the pseudocapacitance of almost all inexpensive OER electrocatalysts such as cobalt oxide, nickel oxide, etc. are similar to that of IrO₂ as described here. Moreover, despite the high cost, noble metals still have the practical potentials for OER, subject to further enhancement in the OER efficiency or as additives in inexpensive electrocatalysts.     

Superhydrophilic Phytic‐Acid‐Doped Conductive Hydrogels as Metal‐Free and Binder‐Free Electrocatalysts for Efficient Water Oxidation

Recently, metal‐free, heteroatom‐doped carbon nanomaterials have emerged as promising electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER), but their synthesis is a tedious process involving energy‐wasting calcination. Molecular electrocatalysts offer attractive catalysts for the OER. Here, phytic acid (PA) was selected to investigate the OER activity of carbons in organic molecules by DFT calculations and experiments. Positively charged carbons on PA were very active towards the OER. The PA molecules were fixed into a porous, conductive hydrogel with a superhydrophilic surface. This outperformed most metal‐free electrocatalysts. Besides the active sites on PA, the high OER activity was also related to the porous and conductive networks on the hydrogel, which allowed fast charge and mass transport during the OER. Therefore, this work provides a metal‐free, organic‐molecule‐based electrocatalyst to replace carbon nanomaterials for efficient OER.     

Electrocatalysts Based on Transition Metal Borides and Borates for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction

Electrochemical water splitting is a clean and sustainable process for hydrogen production on a large scale as the electrical power required can be obtained from various renewable energy resources. The key challenge in electrochemical water splitting process is to develop low-cost electrocatalysts with high catalytic activity for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) on the cathode and the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) on the anode. OER is the most important half-reaction involved in water splitting, which has been extensively studied since the last century and a large amount of electrocatalysts including noble and non-noble metal-based materials have been developed. Among them, transition metal borides and borates (TMBs)-based compounds with various structures have attracted increasing attention owing to their excellent OER performance. In recent years, many efforts have been devoted to exploring the OER mechanism of TMBs and to improving the OER activity and stability of TMBs. In this review, recent research progress made in TMBs as efficient electrocatalysts for OER is summarized. The chemical properties, synthetic methodologies, catalytic performance evaluation, and improvement strategy of TMBs as OER electrocatalysts are discussed. The electrochemistry fundamentals of OER are first introduced in brief, followed by a summary of the preparation and performance of TMBs-based OER electrocatalysts. Finally, current challenges and future directions for TMBs-based OER electrocatalysts are discussed.     

Application of In Situ Techniques for the Characterization of NiFe‐Based Oxygen Evolution Reaction (OER) Electrocatalysts

Developing high‐efficiency and affordable electrocatalysts for the sluggish oxygen evolution reaction (OER) remains a crucial bottleneck on the way to the practical applications of rechargeable energy storage technologies and water splitting for producing clean fuel (H₂). In recent years, NiFe‐based materials have proven to be excellent electrocatalysts for OER. Understanding the characteristics that affect OER activity and determining the OER mechanism are of vital importance for the development of OER electrocatalysts. Therefore, in situ characterization techniques performed under OER conditions are urgently needed to monitor the key intermediates together with identifying the OER active centers and phases. In this Minireview, recent advances regarding in situ techniques for the characterization of NiFe‐based electrocatalysts are thoroughly summarized, including Raman spectroscopy, X‐ray absorption spectroscopy, ambient pressure X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Mössbauer spectroscopy, Ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy, differential electrochemical mass spectrometry, and surface interrogation scanning electrochemical microscopy. The results from these in situ measurements not only reveal the structural transformation and the progressive oxidation of the catalytic species under OER conditions, but also disclose the crucial role of Ni and Fe during the OER. Finally, the need for developing new in situ techniques and theoretical investigations is discussed to better understand the OER mechanism and design promising OER electrocatalysts.     

The sum is more than its parts: stability of MnFe oxide nanoparticles supported on oxygen-functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes at alternating oxygen reduction reaction and oxygen evolution reaction conditions

Successful design of reversible oxygen electrocatalysts does not only require to consider their activity towards the oxygen reduction (ORR) and the oxygen evolution reactions (OER), but also their electrochemical stability at alternating ORR and OER operating conditions, which is important for potential applications in reversible electrolyzers/fuel cells or metal/air batteries. We show that the combination of catalyst materials containing stable ORR active sites with those containing stable OER active sites may result in a stable ORR/OER catalyst if each of the active components can satisfy the current demand of their respective reaction. We compare the ORR/OER performances of oxides of Mn (stable ORR active sites), Fe (stable OER active sites), and bimetallic Mn_0.5Fe_0.5 (reversible ORR/OER catalyst) supported on oxidized multi-walled carbon nanotubes. Despite the instability of Mn and Fe oxide for the OER and the ORR, respectively, Mn_0.5Fe_0.5 exhibits high stability for both reactions.

     

Oxygen evolution in spin-sensitive pathways

The overall performance of water electrolysis suffers from the high kinetic barrier in the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) at the anode. Considerable effort has been made on the fundamental understandings of the reaction mechanisms of OER. Recently, the attention has been given to the OER on magnetic catalysts, which is believed being able to promote the kinetics of an OER process from singlet reactants to triplet oxygen. The process in principle involves spin selective electron transfer. Here, we discuss the effects of spin in OER based on the recent advances and summarize our recently proposed mechanisms of the OER in spin-sensitive pathways under the lattice oxygen oxidation mechanism, the interaction of two M?O entity mechanism, and the adsorbate evolution mechanism.     

磁场效应对理解水分解反应物的可能意义

电催化水分解由两个基元反应构成,即析氢反应(HER)和析氧反应(OER).开发强大的HER和OER技术需要在分子层面理解反应机理,然而,目前水分解反应的反应物还没有完全确定.本文利用磁场来研究HER中的质子传输和OER中的氢离子传输,对确定HER和OER中真实的反应物具有重要意义.磁场是改变离子等带电物质运动的一种有效...     

酸性电解水过程中氧析出反应的机理及铱基催化剂的研究进展北大核心CSCD

可持续能源的迅速发展,使绿色清洁的氢能源成为热点。质子交换膜(PEM)水电解是一项很有前途的技术,可高效生产高纯度氢气。IrO_(2)作为质子交换膜(PEM)水电解槽阳极氧析出反应(OER)的商用电催化剂,既能在强酸性、高强度腐蚀条件下保持稳定,又表现出优异的催化性能。然而,由于Ir的稀缺性和昂贵的价格,提高Ir基催化剂的OER活性,开发低Ir催化剂就显得至关重要。对其反应机理的认知是当前的研究热点之一,也是设计优异的OER催化剂的关键所在。因此,首先从OER机理出发,对目前被广泛认可的吸附物逸出机理(AEM)和晶格氧逸出机理(LOER)两种反应机理进行了研究。随后,根据所提出的这两种机理,介绍了OER催化剂设计的基本准则,即调控Ir基催化剂的电子结构,改善反应中间物种在催化活性位点上的吸附能,从而提高OER催化活性。并从催化剂的结构设计、形貌控制、载体材料3个方面简单概述了最近OER催化剂的研究进展。最后,在已有研究的基础上,提出了目前OER催化剂面临的困难与挑战,这为以后相关的研究指明了方向。     

非贵金属电催化析氧催化剂的最新进展

氢气具有环境友好、含量丰富、高能量密度等特点,是一种可以替代化石能源的绿色环保可再生能源. 电解水是制备氢气最有效途径之一. 但在电解水过程中,动力学过程非常缓慢,过电位较大的阳极析氧半反应严重限制了阴极析氢反应效率. 因此,研究高效、稳定和低成本的催化剂来降低析氧反应的过电位,从而提高析氢反应效率受到了广泛关注. 基于非贵金属催化剂本身特性及其在高浓度OH-条件下具有较高OER催化活性等原因,本文首先简要介绍碱性条件下析氧反应机理及其性能的评价方法,然后重点讨论非贵金属电催化析氧催化剂的最新研究进展. 最后对如何深入研究催化机理、设计高效、双功能及新型非贵金属电催化析氧催化剂进行了展望.     

电催化析氧反应过渡金属磷化物和硫化物催化剂研究进展（英文）

对化石能源的依赖所造成的环境污染和能源危机在全球引起了广泛的关注.氢能由于其高能量密度、低分子质量以及清洁无污染的优点,被认为是人类根本性解决能源与环境等全球性问题的理想替代能源.电解水是生产高纯度氢的重要方法,是现代清洁能源技术的重要组成部分.水电解由阴极析氢(HER)和阳极析氧(OER)两个半反应构成.对于HER反应,其反应是基于二电子转移过程,反应过程相对容易进行.相比于HER反应,OER反应涉及四电子转移及氧-氧键形成,其反应动力学缓慢,是影响水电解效率的主要原因.因此,为了提高电解水制氢的能量转化效率,发展OER电催化剂成为水电解制氢技术的关键.在过去的十余年间,硫化物、硒化物、磷化物、硼化物等非贵金属基OER电催化剂被大量地研究及报道并取得了长足发展.在这些催化剂中,金属磷化物和硫化物不仅具有成本优势,而且在析氧过电位、耐久性方面正趋接近甚至超越RuO_2和IrO_2等贵金属催化剂,颇具应用潜力.本文总结磷化物和硫化物作为OER电催化剂的研究进展,重点介绍了磷化物和硫化物性能提升策略及其在OER过程中催化反应活性位的变化.本文首先介绍了电解水析氧反应在不同电解质中的反应机理,讨论了析氧反应在动力学和热力学过程的主要障碍.通过对大量文献的归纳,本文分别综述了磷化物和硫化物的化学性质、合成方法和催化性能,介绍了近年来磷化物和硫化物的重要研究进展.通过分析催化剂导电性、质子传输、活性面积、界面化学等因素对催化析氧反应的影响,总结了磷化物和硫化物电催化OER性能提升的策略.由于磷化物和硫化物在OER强氧化条件下,电催化剂表面的成分、物相及结构均会发生显著变化,进而催化反应活性位也会发生相应改变.本文综述了磷化物和硫化物在OER反应过程前后表面组分的变化,探讨了磷化物和硫化物作为OER电催化剂的活性组分,为进一步提高磷化物和硫化物的电催化析氧反应性能提供了崭新的思路.     

Oxygen Evolution Reaction over the Au/YSZ Interface at High Temperature

The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is a sluggish electrocatalytic reaction in solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOECs) at high temperatures (600–850 °C). Perovskite oxide has been widely investigated for catalyzing the OER; however, the formation of cation‐enriched secondary phases at the oxide/oxide interface blocks the active sites and decreases OER performance. Herein, we show that the Au/yttria‐stabilized zirconia (YSZ) interface possesses much higher OER activity than the lanthanum strontium manganite/YSZ anode. Electrochemical characterization and density functional theory calculations suggest that the Au/YSZ interface provides a favorable path for OER by triggering interfacial oxygen spillover from the YSZ to the Au surface. In situ X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy results confirm the existence of spillover oxygen on the Au surface. This study demonstrates that the Au/YSZ interface possesses excellent catalytic activity for OER at high temperatures in SOECs.     

析氧反应中催化剂-电解质界面的质子动力学研究

电催化水分解是一种可持续的绿色产氢技术,该技术在工业化的大规模应用急需开发高效稳定的非贵金属催化剂,用于提高析氧反应(OER)的反应速率.研究发现,钙钛矿氧化物是优异的OER催化剂,但是对于发生在催化剂-电解质固液界面上的反应机理仍有争论.目前普遍认为,在OER反应过程中,水分子吸附在金属氧化物催化剂表面的金属活性中心...     

高性能析氧电催化剂的设计策略

电催化水分解反应是可以实现规模化制取氢气的一种重要绿色无污染的手段,但是其效率极大地受制于阳极析氧反应. 因此,发展廉价、高效的析氧反应催化剂是当下的研究热点. 通过分析决定析氧反应催化活性的因素,本综述总结了低成本、高效、稳定的析氧电催化剂的一些通用设计与制备策略,包括：1）通过电子结构调控、结晶度调控、相调控、缺陷位调控以及自旋态调控提升单个催化活性位点的本征催化活性;2）设计与构筑先进电极结构,以实现活性位点数量最大化,获得大电流下稳定的电极材料. 进而,选取了一些具有代表性的高效析氧催化剂作为例子来阐述这些策略的实用性. 最后,对高效、可在大电流密度下稳定工作的析氧催化剂的理性设计、可控制备和发展方向提出了展望,以期为新型高性能析氧催化剂的设计提供指导.     

Electronic and Nano-structural Modulation of Co(OH)2 Nanosheets by Fe-Benzenedicarboxylate for Efficient Oxygen Evolution

Oxygen evolution reaction(OER) plays a key role in the electrochemical conversion and storage processes, but the sluggish kinetics of OER strongly impedes its large-scale applications. We herein reported the in situ growth of Fe-benzenedicarboxylate(Fe-BDC) on Co(OH)₂ nanoplates[Fe-BDC/ Co(OH)₂] that showed remarkably enhanced OER activity than the pristine Co(OH)₂. The incorporation of Fe species could enhance the intrinsic OER activity of Co and BDC could increase the electro-chemically active surface area(ECSA), thus resulting in dramatically enhanced OER activity. In situ Raman spectroscopy characterization disclosed that Fe-CoOOH reconstructed from Fe-BDC/Co(OH)₂ was the real active site for OER. This work highlights the significance of rational tailoring of the nanostructure and electronic structure of Co(OH)₂ and provides more opportunities for its widespread applications.     

Multi-Domain versus Single-Domain: A Magnetic Field is Not a Must for Promoting Spin-Polarized Water Oxidation

The reaction kinetics of spin-polarized oxygen evolution reaction (OER) can be enhanced by ferromagnetic (FM) catalysts under an external magnetic field. However, applying a magnetic field necessitates additional energy consumption and creates design difficulties for OER. Herein, we demonstrate that a single-domain FM catalyst without external magnetic fields exhibits a similar OER increment to its magnetized multi-domain one. The evidence is given by comparing the pH-dependent increment of OER on multi- and single-domain FM catalysts with or without a magnetic field. The intrinsic activity of a single-domain catalyst is higher than that of a multi-domain counterpart. The latter can be promoted to approach the former by the magnetization effect. Reducing the FM catalyst size into the single-domain region, the spin-polarized OER performance can be achieved without a magnetic field, illustrating an external magnetic field is not a requirement to reap the benefits of magnetic catalysts.     

Enlightening the journey of metal-organic framework (derived) catalysts during the oxygen evolution reaction in alkaline media via operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy

The development of catalysts with enhanced activity for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) compared to the traditionally used metal oxide catalysts is crucial for further commercialization of electrolyzers. Because of their high surface area and adjustable pore structure, metal-organic framework (MOF)-based catalysts represent a promising alternative. During the OER in alkaline media, the initial MOF structure is susceptible to transformations including the decomposition of the organic backbone and/or the formation of oxide, hydroxide and oxyhydroxide intermediates. Hence, operando characterizations of MOF catalysts during OER are essential to understand the material's progressive changes and extract the OER catalytic mechanism. This article discusses existing operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy studies of MOF(-derived) catalysts during OER and extracts important parameters for future research regarding operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy characterizations of MOFs during alkaline electrolysis.     

Phase-Selective Syntheses of Cobalt Telluride Nanofleeces for Efficient Oxygen Evolution Catalysts

Cobalt-based nanomaterials have been intensively explored as promising noble-metal-free oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts. Herein, we report phase-selective syntheses of novel hierarchical CoTe₂ and CoTe nanofleeces for efficient OER catalysts. The CoTe₂ nanofleeces exhibited excellent electrocatalytic activity and stablity for OER in alkaline media. The CoTe₂ catalyst exhibited superior OER activity compared to the CoTe catalyst, which is comparable to the state-of-the-art RuO₂ catalyst. Density functional theory calculations showed that the binding strength and lateral interaction of the reaction intermediates on CoTe₂ and CoTe are essential for determining the overpotential required under different conditions. This study provides valuable insights for the rational design of noble-metal-free OER catalysts with high performance and low cost by use of Co-based chalcogenides.     

Exploring the Influence of Halogen Coordination Effect of Stable Bimetallic MOFs on Oxygen Evolution Reaction

The energy crisis and environmental pollution have forced scientists to explore alternative energy conversion and storage devices. The anodic reactions of these devices are all oxygen evolution reactions (OER), so the development of efficient OER electrocatalysts is of great significance. At the same time, understanding the reaction mechanism of OER is conducive to the rational design of efficient OER electrocatalysts. In general, catalytic active centers play a direct role in OER performance. In this paper, a series of stable bimetallic metal–organic frameworks (MOFs, named as Fe₃-Co_n-X₂, n=2, 3 and X=F, Cl, Br) with similar structure were synthesized by changing the halogen coordinated with the cobalt metal active center, aiming to investigate the influence of halogen substitution effect on OER performance. It was found that the OER activity of Fe₃-Co₃-F₂ is much better than Fe₃-Co₂-Cl₂ and Fe₃-Co₂-Br₂, indicating that the regulation of the electronegativity change of the coordination halogen atom can regulate the coordination electron structure of the metal active center, thereby achieving effective regulation of OER performance.     

Heterostructures Composed of N‐Doped Carbon Nanotubes Encapsulating Cobalt and β‐Mo2C Nanoparticles as Bifunctional Electrodes for Water Splitting

Herein, we demonstrate the use of heterostructures comprised of Co/β‐Mo₂C@N‐CNT hybrids for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in an alkaline electrolyte. The Co can not only create a well‐defined heterointerface with β‐Mo₂C but also overcomes the poor OER activity of β‐Mo₂C, thus leading to enhanced electrocatalytic activity for HER and OER. DFT calculations further proved that cooperation between the N‐CNTs, Co, and β‐Mo₂C results in lower energy barriers of intermediates and thus greatly enhances the HER and OER performance. This study not only provides a simple strategy for the construction of heterostructures with nonprecious metals, but also provides in‐depth insight into the HER and OER mechanism in alkaline solution.