UNS:EFFECT OF METAL OXIDE INTERACTIONS ON OXYGEN EVOLUTION REACTION FOR WATER ELECTROLYSIS

主要研究者（PI）先前的工作已经确定了一种有前途的催化剂配方，用于在高酸性电催化环境中通过析氧反应（OER）生产氢气。该催化剂部分地用较低成本的锡（Sn）代替昂贵的贵金属铱（Ir）和钌（Ru）。本研究的目的是进一步了解含锡催化剂的高性能和稳定性的原因，作为开发更好的催化剂的指导。 拟议的工作将有助于改善，降低成本，电催化剂的各种能源应用，并将开发创造性的教育工具，高中学生除了本科和研究生的机会，为代表性不足的少数民族。目前的建议扩大了PI以前的工作与氟-掺杂的混合氧化物SnIr催化剂，以获得其高性能的原因与减少贵金属负载的基本理解。理论和实验的方法将集中在一系列的SnIr催化剂与不同的Sn到Ir的比例，并与各种水平的F-掺杂。 通过将表面和体实验探针与密度泛函理论相结合，（VASP代码）计算方法，他们将从根本上理解负责F-10的稳定性和性能属性的几何结构和电子结构，掺杂的混合氧化物催化剂。拟议的工作有可能广泛影响我们对水电解的理解，因为催化剂含有减少量的昂贵贵金属与目前的催化剂技术相比，这有助于在与燃料电池、氢生产和整体能源可持续性相关的领域取得进展。 研究还将为本科生和研究生提供教育和培训机会，包括从北卡罗来纳州农业和技术州立大学招收少数民族学生。 此外，PI将开展一项雄心勃勃的计划，让高中生参与水解水的挑战和机遇，包括视听动画和动手演示。

Previous work by the principal investigator (PI) has identified a promising catalyst formulation for the production of hydrogen via the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in highly-acidic electrocatalytic environments. The catalyst partially substitutes lower-cost tin (Sn) for the expensive noble metals iridium (Ir) and ruthenium (Ru). The goal of the present study is to further understand the reasons for the high performance and stability of the the Sn-containing catalysts as a guide for developing even better catalysts. The proposed work will contribute to improved, lower cost, electrocatalysts for a variety of energy applications and will develop creative educational tools for high school students in addition to undergraduate and graduate opportunities for underrepresented minorities.The present proposal expands the PI's previous work with fluorine-doped mixed oxide SnIr catalysts to gain fundamental understanding of the reasons for their high performance with reduced noble metal loading. Both theoretical and experimental approaches will be employed focusing on a range of SnIr catalysts with varying Sn-to-Ir ratio, and with various levels of F-doping. By combining surface and bulk experimental probes with Density Functional Theory (VASP code)computational methods, they will obtain fundamental understanding of both the geometric and electronic structures responsible for the stability and performance attributes of the F-doped mixed oxide catalysts.The proposed work has the potential to broadly impact our understanding of water electrolysis as promoted by catalysts containing reduced amounts of expensive precious metals compared to current catalyst technology, thereby aiding progress in areas related to fuel cells, hydrogen production, and overall energy sustainability. The research will also provide education and training opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students, including recruiting minority students from North Carolina Agriculture and Technical State University. In addition, the PI will undertake an ambitious program to engage high school students in the challenges and opportunities around water hydrolysis including audio-visual animation and hands-on demonstrations.