Supported catalysts for sustainable water oxidation: completing the cycle for generation of hydrogen from water

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The need for renewable, non-polluting sources of energy cannot be understated. Only the sun provides sufficient energy volume to meet current and predictably greater future energy needs, but due to the fluxional nature of solar energy, and the fact that Canada's greatest energy needs are in the winter, the development of some type of "solar fuel" is essential. The only sustainable, realistic option for this is to split water into hydrogen an oxygen. There is already significant infrastructure in place to support hydrogen as fuel: fuel-cell vehicles which use hydrogen as fuel are a global reality and most of the world's automotive companies are building hydrogen cars. Toyota and Honda have both announced that they will put a hydrogen car on the market in 2015. However, the lack of a substantive hydrogen fuelling infrastructure and the difficulties with public perception of the safety of hydrogen are significant concerns. Thus the ability to produce hydrogen on demand from water would have a huge impact. In the water splitting reaction, the generation of hydrogen is thermodynamically easy, however the concomitant production of oxygen remains a significant challenge. This reaction is essential, otherwise a sacrificial additive is needed to balance the equation by reacting with the 1/2 oxygen equivalent that is left over. This is clearly not sustainable, and thus there is significant work being put into water oxidation. Research efforts are broadly classified into homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts, each with their own drawbacks. Remarkably little work has been done at the interface in terms of SUPPORTED catalysts, likely because of the harsh environment to which the catalyst (and linker to the support) must be exposed. The proposed work builds on a recent report from the labs of three of the PIs, in which a unique method of attachment that is incredibly robust has been developed. The team is comprised of synthesis, catalysis, surface analysis, inorganic spectroscopy, electrochemistry and kinetics researchers. Our industrial partner ALTRANEX is a Kingston-based company in the alternative energy sector. They will provide considerable expertise in kinetics, modelling and electrochemistry.