Lattice Strain-Induced Regulation of Interfacial Water Promotes Hydrogen Production from Natural Seawater

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dc.contributor.authorBao, D.
dc.contributor.authorHuang, L.
dc.contributor.authorZheng, Y.
dc.contributor.authorQiao, S.-Z.
dc.date.issued2025
dc.description.abstractNatural seawater electrolysis provides an effective approach to harnessing abundant ocean reserves for hydrogen production. However, its industrial application is hindered by low efficiency and limited durability due to electrocatalyst deactivation or electrolyzer blockage initiated by precipitation at the cathode and chloride corrosion at the anode. Here, we report a strain-engineered strategy that simultaneously suppresses precipitation and chloride corrosion and enables bipolar hydrogen production in natural seawater electrolysis. A Cu₃–ₓCoₓP catalyst with lattice compressive strain is developed to boost hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) by modulating interfacial water behavior and enhancing catalyst surface hydrophilicity, thereby accelerating water dissociation and facilitating bubble release. This process disrupts the local pH gradient and suppresses precipitation formation over the catalyst. We evidence that this catalyst exhibits high stability, operating for over 1000 h at 100 mA cm¯² in natural seawater. Furthermore, this catalyst can drive formaldehyde oxidation reaction (FOR) at the anode that not only yields value-added formate but also produces H₂ with a low voltage input. When integrated into an electrolyzer, it enables simultaneous hydrogen production at both the cathode and anode, operating at a low cell voltage of 0.55 V at 100 mA cm¯² for over 300 h without chloride hazards.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityDeyu Bao, Linsen Huang, Yao Zheng, Shi-Zhang Qiao
dc.identifier.citationACS Catalysis, 2025; 15(17):14661-14670
dc.identifier.doi10.1021/acscatal.5c03655
dc.identifier.issn2155-5435
dc.identifier.issn2155-5435
dc.identifier.orcidZheng, Y. [0000-0002-2411-8041]
dc.identifier.orcidQiao, S.-Z. [0000-0002-1220-1761] [0000-0002-4568-8422]
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/2440/148102
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherAmerican Chemical Society
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/CE230100032
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP230102027
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP240102575
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/LP210301397
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/FT200100062
dc.rights©2025 American Chemical Society
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1021/acscatal.5c03655
dc.subjectlattice strain; hydrogen evolution reaction; bipolar hydrogen production; direct seawater electrolysis
dc.titleLattice Strain-Induced Regulation of Interfacial Water Promotes Hydrogen Production from Natural Seawater
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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