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Electrocatalytic water oxidation over AlFe2B2.
Dallas K Mann1, Junyuan Xu2, Natalia E Mordvinova3
1Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry , Florida State University , 95 Chieftan Way , Tallahassee , FL 32306 , USA .
Chemical Science
|April 19, 2019
Summary
AlFe2B2 demonstrates excellent performance as an inexpensive oxygen-evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalyst. This material shows high stability and forms active Fe3O4 nanoclusters in situ, outperforming benchmarks.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Electrochemistry
- Catalysis
Background:
- Developing efficient and cost-effective electrocatalysts for the oxygen-evolution reaction (OER) is crucial for energy conversion technologies.
- Current OER catalysts often rely on expensive noble metals, limiting their widespread application.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the electrocatalytic performance of AlFe2B2 for the oxygen-evolution reaction (OER) under alkaline conditions.
- To elucidate the catalytic mechanism and assess the long-term stability of AlFe2B2 as an OER electrocatalyst.
Main Methods:
- Simple synthesis of AlFe2B2 via arc-melting and ball-milling.
- Electrocatalytic performance evaluation using electrochemical measurements.
- Material characterization using electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy.
Main Results:
- AlFe2B2 exhibited excellent OER performance with an overpotential of 0.24 V at 10 mA cm-2.
- The catalyst demonstrated high stability, maintaining performance for over 10 days.
- In situ formation of Fe3O4 nanoclusters on AlFe2B2 layers was identified as the active catalytic species.
Conclusions:
- AlFe2B2 acts as a pre-catalyst, facilitating the formation of highly active Fe3O4 nanoclusters.
- The AlFe2B2-supported Fe3O4 nanoclusters significantly outperform unsupported Fe3O4, FeB, IrO2, and RuO2.
- AlFe2B2 presents a promising, inexpensive, and stable electrocatalyst for the oxygen-evolution reaction.
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