Structurally Ordered Intermetallic Cobalt Stannide Nanocrystals for High-Performance Electrocatalytic Overall
Prashanth W Menezes1, Chakadola Panda1, Somenath Garai1
1Department of Chemistry: Metalorganics and Inorganic Materials, Technische Universität Berlin, Straße des 17 Juni 135, Sekr. C2, 10623, Berlin, Germany.
Angewandte Chemie (International Ed. in English)
|September 25, 2018
Summary
This study presents cobalt stannide (CoSn2) nanocrystals for efficient overall water-splitting. These non-noble catalysts offer low overpotentials for oxygen evolution (OER) and hydrogen evolution (HER) reactions.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Electrochemistry
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Developing efficient, cost-effective electrocatalysts for overall water-splitting is crucial for renewable energy technologies.
- Non-noble metal-based catalysts are highly sought after to replace expensive noble metals like platinum and iridium.
- Understanding the structure-activity relationship in intermetallic compounds is key to designing advanced electrocatalysts.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize structurally ordered non-noble intermetallic cobalt stannide (CoSn2) nanocrystals.
- To investigate the electrocatalytic performance of CoSn2 for overall water-splitting.
- To explore the active sites and mechanisms for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER).
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of tetragonal CoSn2 nanocrystals.
- Electrochemical characterization using techniques like linear sweep voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy.
- Operando studies to identify the catalytically active species under alkaline conditions.
Main Results:
- CoSn2 exhibits low overpotentials for both OER and HER on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) and Ni foam (NF).
- Amorphous CoOx(H) is identified as the active OER species, formed by Sn loss and Co oxidation in alkaline media.
- Co0 sites in CoSn2 are active for HER, with Sn facilitating electrical conductivity.
- A two-electrode electrolyzer using CoSn2 on NF achieved 1.55 V at 10 mA cm-2 with long-term stability.
Conclusions:
- Structurally ordered CoSn2 nanocrystals are effective bifunctional electrocatalysts for overall water-splitting.
- The intermetallic phase offers a cost-effective alternative to noble metal catalysts.
- CoSn2-based electrodes demonstrate promising performance and stability for practical water-splitting devices.
Keywords:
cobalt stannideintermetallic compoundsoxygen and hydrogen evolutionrenewable energywater-splitting electrocatalysisMore Related Videos
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