Collaborative Proposal: Bimetallic Oxyhydroxide Surfaces for Highly Active and Stable Acidic Oxygen Evolution Electrocatalysts

要满足美国未来的能源需求，同时尽量减少碳排放，就需要可持续和可再生能源和燃料。电化学技术——在催化作用的辅助下——提供了一条无碳的途径，利用风能和太阳能等清洁的可再生能源从水和电中产生氢。氢气既可以直接用于发电（例如通过节能燃料电池技术），也可以作为化学品或合成燃料（即非化石燃料）的原料。然而，要实现氢基燃料/化学经济的目标，将需要比现有的更高效、更稳定、成本更低的电催化剂。为此，该项目将利用实验/理论合成、设计和表征方法研究新型电催化剂材料和结构，以促进开发高活性和稳定的低贵金属含量纳米结构电催化剂。该项目将把研究与教育和推广活动结合起来，以提高学生对我国需要科学家和工程师来应对能源和环境挑战的认识。该项目将通过结合一种在氧化电位下在酸中高度稳定的金属和一种对析氧具有催化活性但不稳定的金属，探索对电催化析氧反应（OER）具有活性和稳定的双金属氢氧氧表面组成和结构。该项目的目标是：(i)研究表面结构和组成对OER反应机制和活性以及溶解反应的影响；（ii）确定施加电位和酸性水环境对OER活性部位和溶解过程的影响；（iii）研究替代的活性过渡金属/支撑金属对，以增强电催化剂的OER活性和稳定性。该合作项目将使用综合实验和理论方法研究双金属氢氧表面的结构-活性-稳定性关系，以确定不断变化的表面结构如何影响活性和稳定性。综合计算和实验的努力将为OER和溶解反应的活性位点的性质提供额外的见解。此外，还研究了电解质对反应中电子-质子耦合转移步骤的影响。这项工作将开发合成-结构-活性-稳定性的相关性，从而改进OER电催化剂以及用于其他电催化和催化反应的催化剂。该项目涉及一项综合教育活动，为中学生开发基于视频的模块，以提高学生对科学、技术、工程和数学的兴趣，并旨在通过从德克萨斯州立大学（被列为西班牙裔服务机构）和德克萨斯农工大学（Texas a&m University）的多样化人才储备中招募学生，扩大代表性不足群体的参与。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Sustainable and renewable energy and fuels will be required to meet future U.S. energy demands while minimizing carbon emissions. Electrochemical technology – aided by catalysis – offers a carbon-free route to generating hydrogen from water and electricity using clean, renewable energy sources such as wind and solar energy. The hydrogen can be used either directly for power generation (for example via energy-efficient fuel cell technology) or as a feedstock for chemicals or synthetic (i.e. non-fossil) fuels. Realizing the goal of a hydrogen-based fuel/chemical economy, however, will require more efficient, more stable, and lower-cost electrocatalysts than currently available. To that end, the project will investigate novel electrocatalyst materials and structures using experimental/theoretical synthesis, design, and characterization methods to facilitate development of highly active and stable nanostructured electrocatalysts with low precious metal content. The project will integrate the research with educational and outreach activities to increase student awareness of our Nation’s needs for scientists and engineers to address energy and environmental challenges. The project will explore bimetallic oxyhydroxide surface compositions and structures that are active and stable for the electrocatalytic oxygen evolution reaction (OER) by combining a metal that is highly stable in acid under oxidative potentials and a metal that is catalytically active for oxygen evolution but unstable. The project objectives are to (i) investigate the effects of surface structure and composition on the OER reaction mechanism and activity, and on the dissolution reaction; (ii) determine the effects of applied potential and aqueous acid environment on the active site for OER and the dissolution process; and (iii) investigate alternative active transition metal/supporting metal pairs for enhanced electrocatalyst OER activity and stability. The collaborative project will investigate structure-activity-stability relationships of bimetallic oxyhydroxide surfaces using an integrated experimental and theoretical approach to determine how an evolving surface structure affects activity and stability. The integrated computational-experimental effort will provide additional insight regarding the nature of the active site for both the OER and dissolution reactions. In addition, effects of the electrolyte on the coupled electron-proton transfer steps of the reaction will be investigated. The effort will develop synthesis-structure-activity-stability correlations that can lead to improved OER electrocatalysts as well as catalysts for other electrocatalytic and catalytic reactions. The project involves an integrated educational activity to develop video-based modules for secondary school students to increase students’ interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics and aims to broaden participation of underrepresented groups by recruiting from the diverse talent pool of students from Texas State University, classified as a Hispanic-Serving Institution, and Texas A&M University.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.