Triple-layer catalyst does double duty

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://news.rice.edu/2017/07/26/triple-layer-catalyst-does-double-duty-2/

Triple-layer catalyst does double duty

Mike Williams

– July 26, 2017Posted in: Current News

Rice, University of Houston produce robust catalyst to split water into hydrogen, oxygen

Splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen to produce clean energy can be simplified with a single catalyst developed by scientists at Rice University and the University of Houston.

The electrolytic film produced at Rice and tested at Houston is a three-layer structure of nickel, graphene and a compound of iron, manganese and phosphorus. The foamy nickel gives the film a large surface, the conductive graphene protects the nickel from degrading and the metal phosphide carries out the reaction.

…

“The standard for hydrogen evolution is platinum,” Whitmire said. “We’re using Earth-abundant materials — iron, manganese and phosphorus — as opposed to noble metals that are much more expensive.”

The new catalyst also requires less energy, Whitmire said. “If you want to make hydrogen and oxygen, you have to put in energy, and the more you put in, the less commercially viable it is,” he said. “You want to do it at the minimum amount of energy possible. That’s a benefit of our material: The overpotential (the amount of energy required to trigger electrocatalysis) is small, and quite competitive with other materials. The lower you can get it, the closer you come to making it as efficient as possible for water splitting.”

…

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nanoen.2017.07.027