Atomic metal-non-metal catalytic pair drives efficient hydrogen oxidation catalysis in fuel cells

Wang, Qilun1,2; Wang, Huawei3; Cao, Hao4; Tung, Ching-Wei5,6; Liu, Wei7; Hung, Sung-Fu8; Wang, Weijue7; Zhu, Chun4,9; Zhang, Zihou3; Cai, Weizheng2; Cheng, Yaqi10; Tao, Hua Bing11; Chen, Hao Ming5; Wang, Yang-Gang4; Li, Yujing3; Yang, Hong Bin12; Huang, Yanqiang7; Li, Jun4,13,14; Liu, Bin1

2023-08-01

10.1038/s41929-023-01017

NATURE CATALYSIS   Impact Factor & Quartile

2520-1158

["Rational design of efficient hydrogen oxidation reaction (HOR) electrocatalysts with maximum utilization of platinum-group metal sites is critical to hydrogen fuel cells, but remains a major challenge due to the formidable potential-dependent energy barrier for hydrogen intermediate (H*) desorption on single metal centres. Here we report atomically dispersed iridium-phosphorus (Ir-P) catalytic pairs with strong electronic coupling that integratively facilitate HOR kinetics, in which the reactive hydroxyl species adsorbed on the more oxophilic P site induces an alternative thermodynamic pathway to facilely combine with H* on the adjacent Ir atom, whereas isolated single-atom Ir catalysts are inactive. In H2-O2 fuel cells, this catalyst enables a peak power density of 1.93 W cm-2 and an anodic mass activity as high as 17.11 A mgIr-1 at 0.9 ViR-free, significantly outperforming commercial Pt/C. This work not only advances the development of anodic catalysts for fuel cells, but also provides a precise and universal active-site design principle for multi-intermediate catalysis.","Fuel cells rely on costly and scarce platinum-group metals to catalyse both anodic and cathodic reactions. Here a catalyst consisting of atomically dispersed iridium and phosphorus on carbon is presented, where adjacent iridium and phosphorus sites work as integrative catalytic pairs to synergically boost the performance for the hydrogen oxidation reaction."]

SCI

English

Corresponding

Singapore Agency for Science, Technology and Research[AME IRG A20E5c0080] ; National Natural Science Foundation of China["22075195","52171199"] ; National Science and Technology Council, Taiwan[NSTC 1112628-M-A49-007] ; National Key R&D Program of China[2022YFA1503102] ; NSFC["22022504","22033005","92261111"] ; Science, Technology and Innovation Commission of Shenzhen Municipality[JCYJ20210324103608023] ; Guangdong 'Pearl River' Talent Plan[2019QN01L353] ; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Catalysis[2020B121201002]

Chemistry

Chemistry, Physical

WOS:001065147700004

NATURE PORTFOLIO

Web of Science

1.City Univ Hong Kong, Dept Mat Sci & Engn, Hong Kong, Peoples R China
2.Nanyang Technol Univ, Sch Chem Chem Engn & Biotechnol, Singapore, Singapore
3.Beijing Inst Technol, Sch Mat Sci & Engn, Beijing, Peoples R China
4.Southern Univ Sci & Technol, Dept Chem, Guangdong Prov Key Lab Catalyt Chem, Shenzhen 518055, Peoples R China
5.Natl Taiwan Univ, Dept Chem, Taipei, Taiwan
6.Ming Chi Univ Technol, Dept Mat Engn, New Taipei, Taiwan
7.Chinese Acad Sci, Dalian Inst Chem Phys, Dalian, Peoples R China
8.Natl Yang Ming Chiao Tung Univ, Dept Appl Chem, Hsinchu, Taiwan
9.Guizhou Univ, Key Lab Macrocycl & Supramol Chem Guizhou Prov, Guiyang, Peoples R China
10.Natl Univ Singapore, Dept Mat Sci & Engn, Singapore, Singapore
11.Xiamen Univ, Coll Chem & Chem Engn, Xiamen, Peoples R China
12.Suzhou Univ Sci & Technol, Sch Mat Sci & Engn, Suzhou, Peoples R China
13.Tsinghua Univ, Dept Chem, Beijing, Peoples R China
14.Tsinghua Univ, Minist Educ, Engn Res Ctr Adv Rare Earth Mat, Beijing, Peoples R China

Wang, Qilun,Wang, Huawei,Cao, Hao,et al. Atomic metal-non-metal catalytic pair drives efficient hydrogen oxidation catalysis in fuel cells[J]. NATURE CATALYSIS,2023.

Wang, Qilun.,Wang, Huawei.,Cao, Hao.,Tung, Ching-Wei.,Liu, Wei.,...&Liu, Bin.(2023).Atomic metal-non-metal catalytic pair drives efficient hydrogen oxidation catalysis in fuel cells.NATURE CATALYSIS.

Wang, Qilun,et al."Atomic metal-non-metal catalytic pair drives efficient hydrogen oxidation catalysis in fuel cells".NATURE CATALYSIS (2023).