A corrosion-resistant RuMoNi catalyst for efficient and long-lasting seawater oxidation and anion exchange membrane electrolyzer

Xin Kang(Tsinghua–Berkeley Shenzhen Institute), Fengning Yang(University of Oxford), Zhiyuan Zhang(Tsinghua–Berkeley Shenzhen Institute), Heming Liu(Tsinghua–Berkeley Shenzhen Institute), Shiyu Ge(Tsinghua–Berkeley Shenzhen Institute), Shuqi Hu(Tsinghua–Berkeley Shenzhen Institute), Shaohai Li(Tsinghua–Berkeley Shenzhen Institute), Yuting Luo(University of Toronto), Qiangmin Yu(Tsinghua–Berkeley Shenzhen Institute), Zhibo Liu(Chinese Academy of Sciences), Qiang Wang(Chinese Academy of Sciences), Wencai Ren(Chinese Academy of Sciences), Chenghua Sun(Swinburne University of Technology), Hui–Ming Cheng(Chinese Academy of Sciences), Bilu Liu(Tsinghua–Berkeley Shenzhen Institute)
Nature Communications
June 17, 2023
10.1038/s41467-023-39386-5
Cited by 471Open Access
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Abstract

Abstract Direct seawater electrolysis is promising for sustainable hydrogen gas (H 2 ) production. However, the chloride ions in seawater lead to side reactions and corrosion, which result in a low efficiency and poor stability of the electrocatalyst and hinder the use of seawater electrolysis technology. Here we report a corrosion-resistant RuMoNi electrocatalyst, in which the in situ-formed molybdate ions on its surface repel chloride ions. The electrocatalyst works stably for over 3000 h at a high current density of 500 mA cm −2 in alkaline seawater electrolytes. Using the RuMoNi catalyst in an anion exchange membrane electrolyzer, we report an energy conversion efficiency of 77.9% and a current density of 1000 mA cm −2 at 1.72 V. The calculated price per gallon of gasoline equivalent (GGE) of the H 2 produced is $ 0.85, which is lower than the 2026 technical target of $ 2.0/GGE set by the United Stated Department of Energy, thus, suggesting practicability of the technology.

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