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DOE OSTI · 2403377

Energy catalysis needs ligands with high oxidative stability

Abstract

Replacing fossil fuel-based energy by renewable sources is a transition that society needs to make to meet future energy demand and simultaneously address climate change. Coupling renewable energy sources with electrochemical catalysis provides a promising path to carbon-neutral fuels and chemicals when the necessary reducing equivalents and protons are harvested from water. Developing highly active, stable, and inexpensive electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is accordingly a centerpiece of a renewable energy portfolio. Whereas viable OER catalysts are heterogeneous in nature, owing to their oxidative stability, the realization of stable molecular OER catalysts greatly expands the horizon of energy science with the ability to tune OER energetics and mechanisms with fidelity. In this perspective, current challenges in the field of molecular OER catalysis are addressed with promising lines of research that are directed to designing ligands that can withstand the harsh oxidizing environment of OER.

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BibTeXRIS

Thorarinsdottir, Agnes E., Nocera, Daniel G.. 2021-06-17. Energy catalysis needs ligands with high oxidative stability. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.checat.2021.05.012

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