• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
• /
• 제7권4호
• /
• pp.316-326
• /
• 2016

Development and discovery of efficient, cost-effective, and robust electrocatalysts are imperative for practical and widespread implementation of water electrolysis and fuel cell techniques in the anticipated hydrogen economy. The electrochemical reactions involved in water electrolysis, i.e., hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions, are complex inner-sphere reactions with slow multi-electron transfer kinetics. To develop active electrocatalysts for water electrolysis, the physicochemical properties of the electrode surfaces in electrolyte solutions should be investigated and understood in detail. When electrocatalysis is conducted using nanoparticles with large surface areas and active surface states, analytical techniques with sub-nanometer resolution are required, along with material development. Scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) is an electrochemical technique for studying the surface reactions and properties of various types of electrodes using a very small tip electrode. Recently, the morphological and chemical characteristics of single nanoparticles and bio-enzymes for catalytic reactions were studied with nanometer resolution by combining SECM with atomic force microscopy (AFM). Herein, SECM techniques are briefly reviewed, including the AFM-SECM technique, to facilitate further development and discovery of highly active, cost-effective, and robust electrode materials for efficient electrolysis and photolysis.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
• /
• 제33권6호
• /
• pp.1919-1924
• /
• 2012

Poly(anthranilic acid) was synthesized by rapid mixing method using 5-sulphosalicylic acid as a dopant. The synthesized polymer was characterized by various techniques like FT-IR, UV-Visible, and X-ray diffraction $etc.$, The FT-IR studies reveal that the 5-sulphosalicylic acid is well doped within the polymer. The morphological property was characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopic technique. The electrochemical properties of the polymer were studied by cyclic voltammetric method. The synthesized polymer was used to modify glassy carbon electrode (GCE) and the modified electrode was found to exhibit electrocatalytic activity for the oxidation of uric acid (UA).

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
• /
• 제33권6호
• /
• pp.1829-1833
• /
• 2012

Titania spheres were synthesized using binary ionic liquids to examine the electrocatalytic activity in acid solution. The morphology of $TiO_2$ particles was significantly different with the composition of ionic liquids. Among the binary ionic liquids, four set of mixtures led to the formation of $TiO_2$ sphere with various sizes. The morphology and structure of $TiO_2$ particles were characterized by XRD, $N_2$ physisoption and SEM analysis. All samples possessed an anatase phase after calcinations at $500^{\circ}C$. The structural properties of the samples were varied significantly with the morphology. In cyclic voltammograms, the morphology of $TiO_2$ spheres affected the electrocatalytic activity in water electrolysis. Among the samples, [Omim][$BF_4$]+[Hmim][$BF_4$] was the most effective ionic liquid to synthesize $TiO_2$ sphere with optimum morphology showing the highest electocatalytic performance.

• 한국진공학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 한국진공학회 2013년도 제45회 하계 정기학술대회 초록집
• /
• pp.128.2-128.2
• /
• 2013

Crucially, effective catalysts must be capable of efficiently catalyzing the protonation of adsorbed CO to adsorbed CHO or COH. One of the strategies is alloying with metals with higher oxygen affinity and Au-Zn alloy is one of the best candidates. At first, we made Au-Zn alloy using vacuum evaporating method. Zn was deposited on the Au(211) surface and the amount was estimated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) using the relative sensitivity of Au 4f and Zn 3d. We investigated CO adsorption on a clean Au(211) and Au-Zn alloy using temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) and XPS. From the TPD results, we can conclude that the presence of the particular step sites at the Au(211) surface imparts stronger CO bonding and Zn atoms are sitting on the step sites at the Au(211) when Zn is deposited. The XPS results show the oxygen atoms of CO bond Zn atoms on Au-Zn surface. It should be an evidence that alloying Zn atoms that has high oxygen affinity into an electrocatalyst may allow CHO* to bind to the surface through both the carbon and oxygen atoms.

• 한국결정성장학회지
• /
• 제31권3호
• /
• pp.143-148
• /
• 2021

Alkaline oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts have been widely studied for improving the efficiency and green hydrogen production through electrochemical water splitting. Transition metal-based electrocatalysts have emerged as promising materials that can significantly reduce the hydrogen production costs. Among the available electrocatalysts, transition metal-based layered double hydroxides (LDHs) have demonstrated outstanding OER performance owing to the abundant active sites and favorable adsorption-desorption energies for OER intermediates. Currently, cobalt doped nickel LDHs (NiCo LDHs) are regarded as the benchmark electrocatalyst for alkaline OER, primarily owing to the physicochemical synergetic effects between Ni and Co. We report effects of heat-treatment of the as-grown NiCo LDH on electrocatalytic activities in a temperature range from 250 to 400℃. Electrocatalytic OER properties were analysed by linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The heat-treatment temperature was found to play a crucial role in catalytic activity. The optimum heat-treatment temperature was discussed with respect to their OER performance.

• Corrosion Science and Technology
• /
• 제21권5호
• /
• pp.412-417
• /
• 2022

Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) provide zero emission power sources for electric vehicles and portable electronic devices. Although significant progresses for the widespread application of electrochemical energy technology have been achieved, some drawbacks such as catalytic activity, durability, and high cost of catalysts still remain. Pt-based catalysts are regarded as the most efficient catalysts for sluggish kinetics of oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). However, their prohibitive cost limits the commercialization of PEMFCs. Therefore, we proposed a NiCo@Au core shell structure as Pt-free ORR electrocatalyst in PEMFCs. NiCo alloy was synthesized as core to introduce ionization tendency and autoxidation reaction. Au as a shell was synthesized to prevent oxidation of core NiCo and increase catalytic activity for ORR. Herein, we report the synthesis, characterization, electrochemical properties, and PEMFCs performance of the novel NiCo@Au core-shell as a catalyst for ORR in PEMFCs application. Based on results of this study, possible mechanism for catalytic of autoxidation core@anti-oxidation shell in PEMFCs is suggested.

• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
• /
• 제13권4호
• /
• pp.417-423
• /
• 2022

With the emerging importance of catalysts for water electrolysis, developing efficient and inexpensive electrocatalysts for water electrolysis plays a vital role in renewable hydrogen energy technology. In this study, a 1nm thickness of TiC-supported Ru catalyst for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) has been successfully fabricated using an electron (E)-beam evaporator and thermal decomposition of gaseous CH₄ in a furnace. The prepared Ru/TiC catalyst exhibited an outstanding performance for alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction with an overpotential of 55 mV at 10 mA cm^-2. Furthermore, we demonstrated that the outstanding HER performance of Ru/TiC was attributed to the high surface area of the support and the metal-support interaction.

• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
• /
• 제13권3호
• /
• pp.354-361
• /
• 2022

In a direct methanol fuel cell system (DMFC), one of the drawbacks is methanol crossover. Methanol from the anode passes through the membrane and enters the cathode, causing mixed potential in the cell. Only Pt-based catalysts are capable of operating as cathode for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in a harsh acidic condition of DMFC. However, it causes mixed potential due to high activity toward methanol oxidation reaction of Pt. To overcome this situation, developing Pt-based catalyst that has methanol tolerance is significant, by controlling reactant adsorption or reaction kinetics. Pt/C decorated with phosphate ion was prepared by modified polyol method as cathode catalyst in DMFC. Phosphate ions, bonded to the carbon of Pt/C, surround free Pt surface and block only methanol adsorption on Pt, not oxygen. It leads to the suppression of methanol oxidation in an oxygen atmosphere, resulting in high DMFC performance compared to pristine Pt/C.

• 한국표면공학회지
• /
• 제56권6호
• /
• pp.427-436
• /
• 2023

In the industry, it is recognized that human activities significantly lead to a large amount of wastewater, mainly due to the increased use of water and energy. As a result, the growing field of wastewater resource technology is getting more attention. The common technology for hydrogen production, water electrolysis, requires purified water, leading to the need for desalination and reprocessing. However, producing hydrogen directly from wastewater could be a more cost-effective option compared to traditional methods. To achieve this, a series of first-principle computational simulations were conducted to assess how waste nutrient ions affect standard electrolysis catalysts. This study focused on understanding the adsorption mechanisms of byproducts related to the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in anion exchange membrane (AEM) electrolysis, using Co₃O₄ as a typical non-precious metal catalyst. At the same time, efforts were made to develop a comprehensive free energy prediction model for more accurate predictions of OER results.

• 공업화학
• /
• 제35권2호
• /
• pp.79-84
• /
• 2024

메탄은 풍부하고 재생 가능한 탄화수소이지만, 온실가스로서 지구 온난화를 발생시킨다. 따라서 메탄을 유용한 화학물질이나 에너지원으로의 변환이 필요하다. 메탄올은 메탄의 부분 산화 반응을 통해 합성할 수 있는 간단하고 풍부한화학물질이다. 메탄올은 화학 공급 원료나 수송 연료로 사용될 뿐만 아니라, 저온 연료 전지의 연료로도 적합하다. 그러나 메탄올의 전기화학 산화는 복잡하고 다단계의 반응이므로, 이 반응을 이해하고 최적화하기 위해서는 새로운 전기화학촉매와 반응 메커니즘의 연구가 필요하다. 본 총설에서는 메탄올 산화 반응 메커니즘 및 최근 연구 동향과 향후 연구 방향을 고찰하였다.