Issue 4, 2018

Understanding the activity and selectivity of single atom catalysts for hydrogen and oxygen evolution via ab initial study

Abstract

To identify the specific activity sites for both the HER and OER in experimental realized single transition-metal atom decorated graphene sheets, we assume the number of metal–C bonds (coordination) determines the adsorption strength of reaction intermediates on the metal atom sites. We find the strength weakens with the metal coordination number. Low-coordinated Ni sites, i.e. single-coordinated Ni on the zigzag edge, exhibit the highest activity toward HER, while high-coordinated Ni atoms, i.e. quadruple-coordinated Ni, demonstrate the best OER performance. This assumption has been further confirmed by a wide range of transition metals, including Mn, Fe, Co, Cu, and Pd. Our findings highlight a new family of efficient bifunctional catalysts for water splitting and offer a new paradigm for the design of single-atom HER/OER catalysts toward hydrogen production.

Graphical abstract: Understanding the activity and selectivity of single atom catalysts for hydrogen and oxygen evolution via ab initial study

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
03 Dec 2017
Accepted
20 Dec 2017
First published
21 Dec 2017

Catal. Sci. Technol., 2018,8, 996-1001

Understanding the activity and selectivity of single atom catalysts for hydrogen and oxygen evolution via ab initial study

G. Gao, S. Bottle and A. Du, Catal. Sci. Technol., 2018, 8, 996 DOI: 10.1039/C7CY02463K

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