Ionic Liquid/Deep Eutectic Solvent-Mediated Calcining Synthesis of Cobalt-Based Electrocatalysts for Water Splitting

Area of Science:

• Catalysis
• Materials Science
• Electrochemistry

Background:

• Ionic liquids (ILs) and deep eutectic solvents (DESs) offer unique properties as solvents, templates, and reagents.
• These properties are crucial for developing advanced catalysts for energy applications.
• Cobalt-based catalysts are key materials for water splitting and energy storage.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the advancements in using ILs and DESs for synthesizing cobalt-based catalysts for water splitting.
• To highlight how ILs and DESs enhance catalyst stability and activity through calcination techniques.
• To explore the role of ILs and DESs as reactants in catalyst preparation.

Main Methods:

• Review of literature on ILs and DESs in catalyst synthesis.
• Analysis of calcination techniques (one-step and multi-step) in ILs/DESs.
• Examination of ILs/DESs as sources of metal and heteroatoms for catalyst precursors.

Main Results:

• ILs and DESs, combined with calcination, significantly enhance cobalt catalyst stability and activity.
• These solvents facilitate both simple and complex multi-step calcination processes.
• ILs and DESs can act as reactants, simplifying the synthesis of cobalt phosphide, sulfide, and nitride catalysts.

Conclusions:

• ILs and DESs are highly effective media for designing and synthesizing high-performance cobalt-based electrocatalysts.
• Their designability and participation as reactants streamline catalyst preparation.
• This approach provides practical guidance for developing efficient materials for hydrogen production and energy storage.