Optimal Coatings of Co3O4 Anodes for Acidic Water Electrooxidation
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(Published version)
Date
2024
Authors
Ta, X.M.C.
Trần-Phú, T.
Yuwono, J.A.
Nguyen, T.K.A.
Bui, A.D.
Truong, T.N.
Chang, L.C.
Magnano, E.
Daiyan, R.
Simonov, A.N.
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Journal article
Citation
Small, 2024; 20(39):2304650-1-2304650-11
Statement of Responsibility
Xuan Minh Chau Ta, Thành Trân-Phú, Jodie A. Yuwono, Thi Kim Anh Nguyen, Anh Dinh Bui, Thien N. Truong, Li-chun Chang, Elena Magnano, Rahman Daiyan, Alexandr N. Simonov, and Antonio Tricoli
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Abstract
Implementation of proton-exchange membrane water electrolyzers for large-scale sustainable hydrogen production requires the replacement of scarce noble-metal anode electrocatalysts with low-cost alternatives. However, such earth-abundant materials often exhibit inadequate stability and/or catalytic activity at low pH, especially at high rates of the anodic oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Here, the authors explore the influence of a dielectric nanoscale-thin oxide layer, namely Al2O3, SiO2, TiO2, SnO2, and HfO2, prepared by atomic layer deposition, on the stability and catalytic activity of low-cost and active but insufficiently stable Co3O4 anodes. It is demonstrated that the ALD layers improve both the stability and activity of Co3O4 following the order of HfO2 > SnO2 > TiO2 > Al2O3, SiO2. An optimal HfO2 layer thickness of 12 nm enhances the Co3O4 anode durability by more than threefold, achieving over 42 h of continuous electrolysis at 10 mA cm−2 in 1 m H2SO4 electrolyte. Density functional theory is used to investigate the superior performance of HfO2, revealing a major role of the HfO2|Co3O4 interlayer forces in the stabilization mechanism. These insights offer a potential strategy to engineer earth-abundant materials for low-pH OER catalysts with improved performance from earth-abundant materials for efficient hydrogen production.
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Published online: October 20, 2023
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© 2023 The Authors. Small published by Wiley-VCH GmbH. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.