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Advancing Functional Electrocatalysts for Hybrid Water Splitting: Strategies for Energy-Efficient Hydrogen Production
Thirukumaran Periyasamy1, Shakila Parveen Asrafali1, Jaewoong Lee1
1Department of Fiber System Engineering, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan 38541, Republic of Korea.
Micromachines
|May 27, 2026
Summary
This review explores advanced electrocatalysts for sustainable hydrogen production via water splitting. It highlights hybrid systems that replace oxygen evolution with valuable reactions, improving energy efficiency and simplifying catalyst design.
Area of Science:
- Electrochemistry
- Materials Science
- Sustainable Energy
Background:
- Electrocatalytic water splitting offers a sustainable hydrogen production pathway.
- Multifunctional electrocatalysts simplify system design and enhance efficiency for both hydrogen evolution (HER) and oxygen evolution (OER).
- Conventional water splitting faces limitations due to high overpotentials and low-value oxygen production in OER.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the fundamentals of water splitting and advanced electrocatalysts.
- To highlight techniques for probing electrocatalyst activity and structural changes.
- To evaluate various catalysts for HER and alternative anodic reactions in hybrid water splitting systems.
Main Methods:
- Review of literature on water splitting and electrocatalyst development.
- Discussion of physicochemical techniques for catalyst characterization and performance evaluation.
- Analysis of noble-metal, nonprecious-metal, and metal-free nanocarbon catalysts.
Main Results:
- Hybrid water splitting, replacing OER with valuable oxidation reactions, enhances energy and economic efficiency.
- Multifunctional catalysts are crucial for efficient dual-reaction water splitting.
- Nanocarbon-based catalysts show promise in various media for alternative anodic reactions.
Conclusions:
- Developing efficient, durable, and sustainable electrocatalysts is key for advanced hydrogen production.
- Understanding catalyst structural reconstruction under operating conditions is vital.
- Hybrid water splitting presents a promising strategy for efficient and valuable chemical production.
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