Local Configuration Design of Low-dimension Materials for Water Electrolysis
Yao Zhou1*, Jiadong Zhou1, Qian Liu2, Jiacheng Wang2, Jianjun Liu2, Zheng Liu3, Hong Jin Fan3
1 Beijing Institute of Technology, 5 South Zhnogguancun Street, Beijing 100081, China
2 Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1295 Dingxi Rd, Shanghai 200050, China
3 Nanyang Technological University, 21 Nanyang Link, Singapore 637371, Singapore
EXTENDED ABSTRACT: Water electrolysis is a promising approach to produce high-purity hydrogen. It requires effective electrocatalysts at cathode to lower the energy barrier and the cost for practical use. For intrinsic activity, it closely relates with the local configurations on the surface. As a result, the precise design of local configuration of electrocatalysts is urgently needed to enahnce the intrinsic activity and reduce the trialand-error cost. Low-dimension materials are excellent models to study local configuration with relatively more exposed surface and less impact of thickness compared to normal materials. In this presentation, monolayer VI-, and VII-group transition metal chalcogenides (MoS2, ReS2) and amorphous MoSxOy nano-islands are employed to investigate the local configurations on the surface to activate inert basal plane and to enhance the cycling stability. The per-site activity of in-plane sulfur sites of MoS2 monolayer via precise predicting and tuning H-S bonding strength, which can be correlated with the charge transfer capacity of local configuration and is realized by forming a group of local configurations of transition metal atom or clusters and compensative sulfur vacancy. In addition, rational constructing active metal-metal bonds in ReS2 monolayer produces intrinsic charge engineering, which has an auto-optimizing effect on activity. For enhanced cycling stability, a charge balancing strategy with compatible electronegativity between co-dopants efficiently offers the original watersoluble amorphous MoSxOy with an excellent stability in acidic solution.
Dr. Yao Zhou obtained her Ph.D. degree from the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2015. Since then, she has worked as an associate professor at Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. She worked as a research fellow in Nanyang Technological University from 2018 to 2021. Currently, she is a professor at Beijing Institute of Technology. Her research interests focus on novel structures and materials (2D materials, single-atom catalysts, heterostructures et al.) for electrocatalysis and advanced batteries. Till now, she has published over 40 peer-reviewed journal papers including Nature, Nature Communications, Advanced Materials, ACS Nano, Energy Storage Materials, Nano Energy with the total citation of 2965 and H-index of 27. Dr. Zhou is the youth editor member of journals Rare Metals and Tungsten.