Issue

Vol. 16 (2024)

Amorphous Iridium Oxide-Integrated Anode Electrodes with Ultrahigh Material Utilization for Hydrogen Production at Industrial Current Densities

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-024-01411-7
Lei Ding
Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
Kui Li
Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
Weitian Wang
Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
Zhiqiang Xie
Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
Shule Yu
Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
Haoran Yu
Oak Ridge National Lab, Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
David A. Cullen
Oak Ridge National Lab, Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
Alex Keane
Nel Hydrogen, Wallingford, CT 06492, USA
Kathy Ayers
Nel Hydrogen, Wallingford, CT 06492, USA
Christopher B. Capuano
Nel Hydrogen, Wallingford, CT 06492, USA
Fangyuan Liu
Institute of Materials Science, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
Pu‑Xian Gao
Institute of Materials Science, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
Feng‑Yuan Zhang
Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2535-0966

Corresponding Author: Feng‑Yuan Zhang

fzhang@utk.edu

Nano-Micro Letters, Vol. 16 (2024), Article Number: 203

Abstract

Herein, ionomer-free amorphous iridium oxide (IrOx) thin electrodes are first developed as highly active anodes for proton exchange membrane electrolyzer cells (PEMECs) via low-cost, environmentally friendly, and easily scalable electrodeposition at room temperature. Combined with a Nafion 117 membrane, the IrOx-integrated electrode with an ultralow loading of 0.075 mg cm−2 delivers a high cell efficiency of about 90%, achieving more than 96% catalyst savings and 42-fold higher catalyst utilization compared to commercial catalyst-coated membrane (2 mg cm−2). Additionally, the IrOx electrode demonstrates superior performance, higher catalyst utilization and significantly simplified fabrication with easy scalability compared with the most previously reported anodes. Notably, the remarkable performance could be mainly due to the amorphous phase property, sufficient Ir3+ content, and rich surface hydroxide groups in catalysts. Overall, due to the high activity, high cell efficiency, an economical, greatly simplified and easily scalable fabrication process, and ultrahigh material utilization, the IrOx electrode shows great potential to be applied in industry and accelerates the commercialization of PEMECs and renewable energy evolution.


Highlights:
1 Electrodeposited amorphous IrOx thin electrodes are first developed for proton exchange membrane electrolyzer cells.
2 An ultralow loading of 0.075 mg cm−2 archives superior performance to catalyst-coated membrane (2 mg cm−2).
3 > 96% of catalyst savings and > 42-fold higher catalyst utilization are demonstrated.

Keywords

Ionomer-free Amorphous IrOx electrodes Ultrahigh material utilization Scalable electrodeposition Hydrogen production
Ding, Lei, Kui Li, Weitian Wang, Zhiqiang Xie, Shule Yu, Haoran Yu, David A. Cullen, Alex Keane, Kathy Ayers, Christopher B. Capuano, Fangyuan Liu, Pu‑Xian Gao, and Feng‑Yuan Zhang. 2024. “Amorphous Iridium Oxide-Integrated Anode Electrodes With Ultrahigh Material Utilization for Hydrogen Production at Industrial Current Densities”. Nano-Micro Letters 16 (May):203. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-024-01411-7.
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