Issue 8, 2023

Order–disorder engineering of RuO2 nanosheets towards pH-universal oxygen evolution

Abstract

Ru-based electrocatalysts are considered promising anode catalysts towards water electrolysis due to their impressive activity under acidic conditions. Yet, caused by the collapse of the local crystalline domains and concurrent leaching of Ru species during the OER process, durability against structural degradation remains poor. Herein, we present an order–disorder structure optimization strategy, based on RuO2 nanosheets with well-defined amorphous–crystalline boundaries supported on carbon cloth (a/c-RuO2/CC), to effectively catalyze water oxidation, especially in the case of an acidic medium. Specifically, the as-prepared a/c-RuO2/CC sample has achieved a lower overpotential of 150 mV at 10 mA cm−2, a smaller Tafel slope of 47 mV dec−1, and a significantly higher durability with suppressed dissolution of Ru, with regard to its crystalline (c-RuO2/CC) and amorphous (a-RuO2/CC) counterparts. Computational simulations combined with experimental characterizations uncover that the construction of the structurally ordered–disordered boundary enables a weakened Ru–O covalency with regard to the ordered counterpart, which suppresses the leaching of active Ru species from the crystalline phase, thus enhances stability. An upshift of the d-band center in a/c-RuO2/CC relative to a-RuO2/CC reduces the energy barrier of the potential-determining step (*O → *OOH), thereby dramatically boosting activity.

Graphical abstract: Order–disorder engineering of RuO2 nanosheets towards pH-universal oxygen evolution

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Communication
Submitted
14 شعبان 1444
Accepted
15 شوال 1444
First published
20 شوال 1444

Mater. Horiz., 2023,10, 2904-2912

Order–disorder engineering of RuO2 nanosheets towards pH-universal oxygen evolution

Y. Zhang, Y. Zhang, Z. Zeng and D. Ho, Mater. Horiz., 2023, 10, 2904 DOI: 10.1039/D3MH00339F

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements