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Exploring the Strain Effect in Single Particle Electrochemistry using Pd Nanocrystals |
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| Authors: | Jiao Zhao Dr Menglin Wang Yu Peng Jie Ni Sunpei Hu Prof Dr Jie Zeng Prof Dr Qianjin Chen |
| Institution: | 1. State Key Laboratory for Modification of Chemical Fibers and Polymer Materials, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Donghua University, Shanghai, 201620 China
These authors contributed equally to this work.;2. Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Key Laboratory of Strongly-Coupled Quantum Matter Physics of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Key Laboratory of Surface and Interface Chemistry and Energy Catalysis of Anhui Higher Education Institutes, Department of Chemical Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, 230026 P. R. China These authors contributed equally to this work.;3. State Key Laboratory for Modification of Chemical Fibers and Polymer Materials, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Donghua University, Shanghai, 201620 China;4. Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Key Laboratory of Strongly-Coupled Quantum Matter Physics of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Key Laboratory of Surface and Interface Chemistry and Energy Catalysis of Anhui Higher Education Institutes, Department of Chemical Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, 230026 P. R. China |
| Abstract: | Tuning the surface strain of heterogeneous catalysts is recognized as a powerful strategy for tailoring their catalytic activity. However, a clear understanding of the strain effect in electrocatalysis at single-particle resolution is still lacking. Here, we explore the electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) of single Pd octahedra and icosahedra with the same surface bounded {111} crystal facet and similar sizes using scanning electrochemical cell microscopy (SECCM). It is revealed that tensilely strained Pd icosahedra display significantly superior HER electrocatalytic activity. The estimated turnover frequency at −0.87 V vs RHE on Pd icosahedra is about two times higher than that on Pd octahedra. Our single-particle electrochemistry study using SECCM at Pd nanocrystals unambiguously highlights the importance of tensile strain on electrocatalytic activity and may offer new strategy for understanding the fundamental relationship between surface strain and reactivity. |
| Keywords: | Electrocatalysis Scanning Electrochemical Cell Microscopy Single Nanocrystals Strain |