Doped RuO₂ for Acidic Oxygen Evolution Reaction: From Transitional Metals, Main-Group Metals to Nonmetals.

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrochemistry
• Catalysis

Background:

• The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is crucial for water electrolysis but is limited by inefficient electrocatalysts in acidic media.
• Ruthenium dioxide (RuO2) shows high activity but suffers from poor stability due to oxidation to soluble RuO4.
• Proton exchange membrane water electrolyzers (PEMWEs) require stable and active electrocatalysts for efficient hydrogen production.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review recent advancements in heteroatom-doped RuO2 for acidic OER.
• To categorize doping strategies and elucidate their impact on catalyst properties and performance.
• To provide mechanistic insights and identify future research directions for improved RuO2-based electrocatalysts.

Main Methods:

• Systematic categorization of dopants (transition metals, main-group metals, non-metals).
• Analysis of experimental and theoretical studies on doped RuO2.
• Elucidation of structure-activity relationships and mechanistic pathways.

Main Results:

• Heteroatom doping precisely tunes the electronic structure and stabilizes the RuO2 lattice.
• Doping optimizes intermediate adsorption and modifies active sites, enhancing OER activity.
• Improved catalytic activity and durability were observed across various doping strategies.

Conclusions:

• Heteroatom doping is a viable strategy to overcome RuO2 limitations for acidic OER.
• Understanding doping effects is key to designing high-performance electrocatalysts for PEMWEs.
• Further research on rational design can accelerate the development of stable and efficient systems for green hydrogen production.