Phys.org October 21, 2024
One of the biggest challenges in electrochemical water splitting is oxygen evolution reaction (OER), a sluggish reaction in which water molecules are broken down into oxygen and hydrogen. The OER can be accelerated by using noble metal catalysts; however, these metals are expensive and scarce, and speeding up the reaction requires additional energy. An international team of researchers (USA – Perdue University, China, Taiwan, Germany) has developed a new method using iridium coordinated with dimethylimidazole (MI) as a reaction accelerator for electrochemical splitting of water which accelerated the production of hydrogen and made it more sustainable. Simulations indicated that the coordination of MI leads to electron redistribution around the Ir sites. This causes a positive shift in the d-band centre at adjacent Ir and Co sites, facilitating an optimal energy pathway for OER… read more. Open Access TECHNICAL ARTICLE
Overall water splitting performance. Credit: Nature Nanotechnology , 21 October 2024