Laser‐Induced Nanoscale Engineering of Iridium‐Based Nanoparticles for High‐Performance Oxygen Evolution
Abstract
Abstract While ruthenium oxide exhibits higher activity, it suffers from significantly lower stability in the acidic oxygen evolution reaction (OER). In contrast, crystalline iridium oxide is among the few materials that remain stable under such harsh conditions. However, its low activity and iridium scarcity require strategies to enhance atomic utilization. Conventional high‐temperature post‐synthetic processing increases the share of rutile‐phase iridium oxide while promoting particle growth, reducing catalytic activity due to a diminished surface area. Here, we present a laser‐induced nano‐oven method using a silicon dioxide matrix as a nanoscale reaction chamber, enabling solid‐state nanoparticle synthesis under ambient conditions while preventing agglomeration and allowing precise size control. The synthesized ultra‐small crystalline rutile iridium oxide of ∼2 nm achieves a high mass activity of 350 ± 15 A g Ir −1 at 300 mV overpotential, exceeding that of crystalline RuO₂ and reaching the activity benchmark of RuO 2 ‐based catalysts. Analysis using a channel flow cell with on‐line inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP‐MS) confirms that laser‐engineered iridium oxide exhibits superior stability to commercial iridium oxide. Operando electron impact MS provided the synthesis mechanistic insights, demonstrating the potential of this strategy for synthesizing ultra‐small crystalline metals and metal oxides for various applications.
Article Details
Authors (16)
Huize Wang
Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH Helmholtz Institute Erlangen‐Nürnberg for Renewable Energy Cauerstraße 1 91058 Erlangen Germany
Philipp Pfeifer
Sustainable Energy Materials Technical University of Munich Campus Straubing Schulgasse 22 94315 Straubing Germany
Wenwei Lai
Department Chemical and Biological Engineering Friedrich‐Alexander‐Universität Erlangen‐Nürnberg Immerwahrstraße 2a 91058 Erlangen Germany
Andreas Göpfert
Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH Helmholtz Institute Erlangen‐Nürnberg for Renewable Energy Cauerstraße 1 91058 Erlangen Germany
Sumin Lim
Wei Zhao
A. Lucía Morales
Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH Helmholtz Institute Erlangen‐Nürnberg for Renewable Energy Cauerstraße 1 91058 Erlangen Germany
Mattis Goßler
Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH Helmholtz Institute Erlangen‐Nürnberg for Renewable Energy Cauerstraße 1 91058 Erlangen Germany
Marko Malinovic
Sustainable Energy Materials Technical University of Munich Campus Straubing Schulgasse 22 94315 Straubing Germany
Pallabi Bhuyan
Sustainable Energy Materials Technical University of Munich Campus Straubing Schulgasse 22 94315 Straubing Germany
Walter A. Parada
Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH Helmholtz Institute Erlangen‐Nürnberg for Renewable Energy Cauerstraße 1 91058 Erlangen Germany
Pavlo Nikolaienko
Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH Helmholtz Institute Erlangen‐Nürnberg for Renewable Energy Cauerstraße 1 91058 Erlangen Germany
Karl J. J. Mayrhofer
Guilherme V. Fortunato
Sustainable Energy Materials Technical University of Munich Campus Straubing Straubing Germany
Andreas Hutzler
Marc Ledendecker
Sustainable Energy Materials, Technical University of Munich, Campus Straubing, Schulgasse 22, 94315 Straubing, Germany