Robust Porous TiN Layer for Improved Oxygen Evolution Reaction Performance

Abstract

The poor reversibility and slow reaction kinetics of catalytic materials seriously hinder the industrialization process of proton exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolysis. It is necessary to develop high-performance and low-cost electrocatalysts to reduce the loss of reaction kinetics. In this study, a novel catalyst support featured with porous surface structure and good electronic conductivity was successfully prepared by surface modification via a thermal nitriding method under ammonia atmosphere. The morphology and composition characterization-confirmed that a TiN layer with granular porous structure and internal pore-like defects was established on the Ti sheet. Meanwhile, the conductivity measurements showed that the in-plane electronic conductivity of the as-developed material increased significantly to 120.8 S cm−1. After IrOx was loaded on the prepared TiN-Ti support, better dispersion of the active phase IrOx, lower ohmic resistance, and faster charge transfer resistance were verified, and accordingly, more accessible catalytic active sites on the catalytic interface were developed as revealed by the electrochemical characterizations. Compared with the IrOx/Ti, the as-obtained IrOx/TiN-Ti catalyst demonstrated remarkable electrocatalytic activity (= 302 mV) and superior stability (overpotential degradation rate: 0.067 mV h−1) probably due to the enhanced mass adsorption and transport, good dispersion of the supported active phase IrOx, increased electronic conductivity and improved corrosion resistance provided by the TiN-Ti support.

Nanotubular TiOxNy-Supported Ir Single Atoms and Clusters as Thin-Film Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Evolution in Acid Media

“…However, in previous years, there was considerable research devoted to the development of new catalysts with reduced noble-metal content. Popular approaches focused on the synthesis of catalysts with core–shell morphologies and minimal Ir content and/or dispersing the noble-metal nanoparticles on a high-surface-area support or mixing them with less expensive oxides of earth-abundant elements. − Examples include reduction of Ir loading by combining core–shell Ir/metal (Fe, Co, or Ni) nitride morphologies, dispersing the active IrO x phase on the TiN–Ti support, uniformly dispersing IrO x nanoparticles on M-SnO 2 (M = Nb, Ta, or Sb) supports, and immobilizing Ir nanoparticles on a conductive indium tin oxide support . Another example of the latter approach was also investigated in our previous studies, which have demonstrated the potential of TiO x N y prepared by anodic oxidation and annealing in ammonia as support for OER catalysts in acid. , TiO x N y is one of the most promising support materials due to its high conductivity and stability (in combination with Ir) in the extremely harsh conditions of OER operation.…”

Phytochemical-assisted green synthesis of CuFeOx nano-rose electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction in alkaline media

“…29 Introducing inexpensive and easily accessible transitional metals (TMs) into a multiphase system is considered more benecial for creating more active points that enhance electrical conductivity and ultimately lead to improved performance. 21,30,31 Particularly, the combination of copper and iron for electrocatalytic material have shown encouraging results. In 2020, Xu et al developed selenium enriched copper-iron selenide on copper foam as highly active catalysts for oxygen evolution through the optimization of surface morphology.…”

Editorial for Special Issue “Advanced Materials in Catalysis and Adsorption”

“…The functionalization of CNMs with heteroatoms (i.e., nitrogen [ 1 , 6 , 7 , 8 ] and boron [ 3 ]) is an effective method for boosting the applicability of carbon nanomaterials as catalytic substrates. Another group of the designed materials belongs to the oxide-based supports, including zeolite catalysts [ 9 ], composite catalytic materials [ 5 , 10 , 11 , 12 ], mixed Mn-Zr-Ce-O oxides [ 13 ], and perovskite-like materials [ 14 ]. In many cases, the active component of the developed catalysts is represented by precious metals—Pd [ 1 , 7 ], Pt [ 5 , 11 ], Rh [ 10 , 11 ], and Ru [ 11 ]—and other metals such as Ag [ 15 ], Au [ 7 , 9 ], and their alloys.…”

“…Advanced catalytic materials have been developed for diverse types of heterogeneous catalytic reactions, such as the hydrodechlorination of chloroaromatics [ 1 ]; the dehalogenation of halogenated hydrocarbons [ 2 ]; dechlorination via catalytic pyrolysis [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]; the catalytic coupling of CH 4 [ 14 ]; the catalytic processing of hydrocarbons and their mixtures into synthesis gas [ 10 , 11 ] or CNT and CNF materials [ 2 , 5 , 6 , 8 ]; the oxidation of carbon monoxide [ 13 ]; the hydrogenation of organic compounds [ 7 ]; and selective oxidation [ 9 ]. Such advanced materials can be also used for electrocatalytic applications involving the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) [ 12 ] and the electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide (CO 2 RR) [ 15 ]. Researchers’ attention has been especially drawn to environmental protection, where advanced materials and adsorbents are highly demanded for the processing of waste components [ 1 , 16 , 17 , 18 ] and pharmaceuticals [ 17 ], the (photo)degradation of dyes [ 16 , 18 ], the catalytic decomposition of chlorinated hydrocarbons [ 1 , 2 , 4 ], wastewater treatment [ 1 , 18 ], and the abatement of CO-containing gases [ 13 ].…”

“…This Special Issue also includes studies related to the design of novel materials for electrocatalytic reactions. In [ 12 ], the researchers fabricated a high-performance and low-cost porous TiN electrocatalyst for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). The authors applied a method of the thermal nitriding of Ti to prepare a novel TiN-Ti support, which was found to yield better dispersion of the active component (IrO x ), lower ohmic resistance, and more accessible catalytic active sites on the catalytic interface.…”