Pinning effect of lattice Pb suppressing lattice oxygen reactivity of Pb-RuO2 enables stable industrial-level electrolysis

Abstract Ruthenium (Ru) is widely recognized as a low-cost alternative to iridium as anode electrocatalyst in proton-exchange membrane water electrolyzers (PEMWE). However, the reported Ru-based catalysts usually only operate within tens of hours in PEMWE because of their intrinsically high reactivi...

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Main Authors: Chenhui Zhou, Lu Li, Zhaoqi Dong, Fan Lv, Hongyu Guo, Kai Wang, Menggang Li, Zhengyi Qian, Na Ye, Zheng Lin, Mingchuan Luo, Shaojun Guo
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2024-11-01
Series:Nature Communications
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-53905-y
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author Chenhui Zhou
Lu Li
Zhaoqi Dong
Fan Lv
Hongyu Guo
Kai Wang
Menggang Li
Zhengyi Qian
Na Ye
Zheng Lin
Mingchuan Luo
Shaojun Guo
author_facet Chenhui Zhou
Lu Li
Zhaoqi Dong
Fan Lv
Hongyu Guo
Kai Wang
Menggang Li
Zhengyi Qian
Na Ye
Zheng Lin
Mingchuan Luo
Shaojun Guo
author_sort Chenhui Zhou
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Ruthenium (Ru) is widely recognized as a low-cost alternative to iridium as anode electrocatalyst in proton-exchange membrane water electrolyzers (PEMWE). However, the reported Ru-based catalysts usually only operate within tens of hours in PEMWE because of their intrinsically high reactivity of lattice oxygen that leads to irrepressible Ru leaching and structural collapse. Herein, we report a design concept by employing large-sized and acid-resistant lattice lead (Pb) as a second element to induce a pinning effect for effectively narrowing the moving channels of oxygen atoms, thereby lowering the reactivity of lattice oxygen in Ru oxides. The Pb-RuO2 catalyst presents a low overpotential of 188 ± 2 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and can sustain for over 1100 h in an acid medium with a negligible degradation rate of 19 μV h−1. Particularly, the Pb-RuO2-based PEMWE can operate for more than 250 h at 500 mA cm−2 with a low degradation rate of only 17 μV h−1. Experimental and theoretical calculation results reveal that Ru-O covalency is reduced due to the unique 6s−2p−4d orbital hybridization, which increases the loss energy of lattice oxygen and suppresses the over-oxidation of Ru for improved long-term stability in PEMWE.
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spelling doaj-art-9240d69ff1044dc786122d3e3fdf2ddb2024-11-17T12:37:31ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232024-11-011511910.1038/s41467-024-53905-yPinning effect of lattice Pb suppressing lattice oxygen reactivity of Pb-RuO2 enables stable industrial-level electrolysisChenhui Zhou0Lu Li1Zhaoqi Dong2Fan Lv3Hongyu Guo4Kai Wang5Menggang Li6Zhengyi Qian7Na Ye8Zheng Lin9Mingchuan Luo10Shaojun Guo11School of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking UniversitySchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking UniversitySchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking UniversitySchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking UniversitySchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking UniversitySchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking UniversitySchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking UniversitySchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking UniversitySchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking UniversitySchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking UniversitySchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking UniversitySchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking UniversityAbstract Ruthenium (Ru) is widely recognized as a low-cost alternative to iridium as anode electrocatalyst in proton-exchange membrane water electrolyzers (PEMWE). However, the reported Ru-based catalysts usually only operate within tens of hours in PEMWE because of their intrinsically high reactivity of lattice oxygen that leads to irrepressible Ru leaching and structural collapse. Herein, we report a design concept by employing large-sized and acid-resistant lattice lead (Pb) as a second element to induce a pinning effect for effectively narrowing the moving channels of oxygen atoms, thereby lowering the reactivity of lattice oxygen in Ru oxides. The Pb-RuO2 catalyst presents a low overpotential of 188 ± 2 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and can sustain for over 1100 h in an acid medium with a negligible degradation rate of 19 μV h−1. Particularly, the Pb-RuO2-based PEMWE can operate for more than 250 h at 500 mA cm−2 with a low degradation rate of only 17 μV h−1. Experimental and theoretical calculation results reveal that Ru-O covalency is reduced due to the unique 6s−2p−4d orbital hybridization, which increases the loss energy of lattice oxygen and suppresses the over-oxidation of Ru for improved long-term stability in PEMWE.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-53905-y
spellingShingle Chenhui Zhou
Lu Li
Zhaoqi Dong
Fan Lv
Hongyu Guo
Kai Wang
Menggang Li
Zhengyi Qian
Na Ye
Zheng Lin
Mingchuan Luo
Shaojun Guo
Pinning effect of lattice Pb suppressing lattice oxygen reactivity of Pb-RuO2 enables stable industrial-level electrolysis
Nature Communications
title Pinning effect of lattice Pb suppressing lattice oxygen reactivity of Pb-RuO2 enables stable industrial-level electrolysis
title_full Pinning effect of lattice Pb suppressing lattice oxygen reactivity of Pb-RuO2 enables stable industrial-level electrolysis
title_fullStr Pinning effect of lattice Pb suppressing lattice oxygen reactivity of Pb-RuO2 enables stable industrial-level electrolysis
title_full_unstemmed Pinning effect of lattice Pb suppressing lattice oxygen reactivity of Pb-RuO2 enables stable industrial-level electrolysis
title_short Pinning effect of lattice Pb suppressing lattice oxygen reactivity of Pb-RuO2 enables stable industrial-level electrolysis
title_sort pinning effect of lattice pb suppressing lattice oxygen reactivity of pb ruo2 enables stable industrial level electrolysis
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-53905-y
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