Atomically dispersed Ni activates adjacent Ce sites for enhanced electrocatalytic oxygen evolution activity

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrochemistry
• Catalysis

Background:

• Improving heterogeneous catalyst performance via atomic-level manipulation is crucial but challenging.
• Electrocatalytic oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is vital for energy conversion technologies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and synthesize a novel catalyst with atomically dispersed active sites for enhanced OER.
• To investigate the mechanism of intrinsic activity improvement through electronic regulation.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of atomically dispersed Ni anchored on CeO2 embedded in nitrogen-doped carbon (a-Ni/CeO2@NC).
• Electrocatalytic performance testing for oxygen evolution reaction.
• Experimental and theoretical calculations (e.g., DFT) to probe electronic structure and reaction mechanisms.

Main Results:

• The a-Ni/CeO2@NC catalyst demonstrated significantly enhanced intrinsic activity for OER.
• A notable reduction in overpotential was observed for the electrocatalytic oxygen evolution reaction.
• Electronic coupling between Ni and CeO2 activated adjacent Ce sites, accelerating OER kinetics.

Conclusions:

• Atomic dispersion of Ni on CeO2@NC provides a viable strategy for boosting electrocatalytic activity.
• Electronic regulation at the atomic level is key to improving catalyst performance.
• This approach offers a promising pathway for designing advanced electrocatalysts.