Publication date: 27th March 2025
Water electrolysis enables sustainable alternatives to power large industries such as transport, manufacturing and agriculture through green hydrogen. These prospects rely on achieving sufficient performance metrics (e.g., energy efficiency, rate, and stability) in scalable processes. Conventionally, this has been pursued by innovation at the catalyst level, for example, designing materials with target physicochemical properties. This is challenging, since catalysts change substantially during reaction, which precludes a predictive catalyst design. On the other hand, while water is arguably the main ingredient in water electrolysis, its role at the catalyst environment and in the electrolyte remains underexplored.
I will first present a new strategy to program catalyst reconstruction. Starting from the same precatalyst, this can either lead to unpredictable composition and structure or enable predictable catalysts with improved reliability. I will then focus on the liquid-side of the reaction. I will show examples on how control over water at catalyst interfaces can enable achieving distinct physicochemical properties leading to improved stability and activity during water electrolysis.