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New Catalyst Revolutionises Oxygen Electrocatalysis Efficiency

New Catalyst Revolutionises Oxygen Electrocatalysis Efficiency

20-05-2025

Significance: GS III; Science and Tech;

 

Why in the News?
 

Indian Scientists from the Centre for Nano and Soft Matter Sciences (CeNS) under the Department of Science and Technology (DST), have developed a novel iron-doped catalyst aimed at improving oxygen-related electrocatalytic reactions.
 

What is Oxygen Electrocatalysis?

  • It is a fundamental process in clean energy technologies such as: Water splitting for hydrogen production, Generation of clean fuels, and synthesis of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂).
  • It is the acceleration of electrochemical reactions involving oxygen molecules, particularly the Oxygen Evolution Reaction (OER) and Oxygen Reduction Reaction (ORR) in energy devices like fuel cells and water electrolysers.
  • It is crucial for improving the efficiency of renewable energy storage systems, especially in metal-air batteries, hydrogen production, and fuel cells.
  • Catalysts include noble metals like platinum and iridium, and newer research focuses on non-noble materials such as transition metal oxides, nitrides, and single-atom catalysts.
  • These technologies face major challenges like slow reaction kinetics, high energy consumption, and high material costs due to reliance on precious metals like platinum (Pt) and ruthenium Ru).


Catalyst Composition and Functionality:

  • After selenium (Se) incorporation, the researchers created two main catalyst variants: NixFe₁−xSe₂–NC and Ni₃−xFexSe₄–NC
  • The most efficient variant, NixFe₁−xSe₂–NC, showed outstanding bifunctional catalytic performance for:
    • Oxygen Evolution Reaction (OER) – For OER, this catalyst exhibited lower overpotential and high durability over 70 hours, surpassing conventional ruthenium-based catalysts.
    • Oxygen Reduction Reaction (ORR) – conversion of oxygen into useful chemicals like hydrogen peroxide. For ORR, especially for H₂O₂ production, it outperformed platinum-based catalysts in terms of reaction speed, efficiency, and stability.

How has it led to innovation?
 

  • The CeNS team developed a low-cost and efficient catalyst using nickel selenide enhanced with iron (Fe) doping, which significantly improves performance while reducing reliance on expensive precious metals.
  • The catalyst was synthesised starting from a metal-organic framework (MOF), known for its high porosity and catalytic potential, but limited by poor electrical conductivity.
  • Iron (Fe) doping was used to modify the MOF's electronic structure, enhancing its catalytic activity by creating more active sites and improving reaction intermediate binding.
  • The MOF was further converted into a carbon-rich material using pyrolysis, a high-temperature process that enhanced the material's electrical conductivity.

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