Incoming Fellow, affiliation:
10/2021-09/2023: Micro- and Nanoanalytics Group, University of Siegen
Earth-abundant and highly efficient hybrid electrode materials for hydrogen generation by electrolysis.
Dr. Jean Marie Vianney Nsanzimana
The transition to sustainable and environmentally friendly energy sources is urgently needed. However, this transition is sluggish due to the challenge on the development of highly efficiency, environmental-friendly, and cost-effective energy materials. To tackle those challenges, new materials with engineered properties for various energy applications are required. Electrochemical energy technologies, including rechargeable metal–air batteries, regenerative fuel cells, and water splitting, have aroused a great interest as attractive alternatives for clean and efficient energy production. Water electrolysis by using sustainable electricity results in green hydrogen and it is the key process towards a circular economy. At present, only a small fraction of around 4% of hydrogen is produced by electrochemical water splitting. State-of-the-art catalysts are platinum (Pt) for the hydrogen gas production at cathode of water electrolyser and iridium (Ir) as well as ruthenium (Ru) oxides for the oxygen evolution reaction at anode. Despite the superior catalytic properties of such precious metal catalysts for water electrolysis, their poor stability, high cost, and scarcity make their commercial utilization both uneconomical and impractical. As such, cheaper yet high-performing earth-abundant materials, possessing high electrocatalytic activity, is paramount desirable. This project aims to design and explore the structure-activity relationship and degradation mechanism of sustainable and high-performing hybrid electrodes by pairing conductive substrates and novel high-efficiency catalysts based on cheaper and earth-abundant materials.