Tackling activity-stability paradox of reconstructed NiIrO_x electrocatalysts by bridged W-O moiety

One challenge remaining in the development of Ir-based electrocatalyst is the activity-stability paradox during acidic oxygen evolution reaction (OER), especially for the surface reconstructed IrO_x catalyst with high efficiency. To address this, a phase selective Ir-based electrocatalyst is constructed by forming bridged W-O moiety in NiIrO_x electrocatalyst. Through an electrochemical dealloying process, an nano-porous structure with surface-hydroxylated rutile NiWIrO_x electrocatalyst is engineered via Ni as a sacrificial element. Despite low Ir content, NiWIrO_x demonstrates a minimal overpotential of 180 mV for the OER at 10 mA·cm^-2. It maintains a stable 300 mA·cm^-2 current density during an approximately 300 h OER at 1.8 V_RHE and shows a stability number of 3.9 × 10⁵ n_oxygen · n_Ir^-1. The resulting W - O-Ir bridging motif proves pivotal for enhancing the efficacy of OER catalysis by facilitating deprotonation of OER intermediates and promoting a thermodynamically favorable dual-site adsorbent evolution mechanism. Besides, the phase selective insertion of W-O in NiIrO_x enabling charge balance through the W-O-Ir bridging motif, effectively counteracting lattice oxygen loss by regulating Ir-O co-valency.