ORRmetIR · Development and in situ Infrared study of Novel Strained Core-shell Electrocatalysts: Towards an Understanding of the Oxygen Reduction Mechanism
„Хоризонт 2020“ — Действия „Мария Склодовска-Кюри“
- Период
- 2015-04-01 → 2017-08-18
- Финансиране от ЕС
- 195 455 €
- Участници
- 1
- Схема
- MSCA-IF-EF-ST
Линиите свързват координатора с партньорите.
Накратко на български
Метални наночастици с обвивка се изследват чрез инфрачервена светлина, за да се разбере как кислородът се превръща във вода. Това помага за създаването на по-евтини и ефективни горивни клетки, които превръщат химическо гориво в електричество.
Кратко обяснение, генерирано от езиков модел по текста на CORDIS. Оригиналът е по-долу.
Резултати накратко
Development and in situ Infrared study of Novel Strained Core-shell Electrocatalysts: Towards an Understanding of the Oxygen Reduction Mechanism
The overall objectives: The project is directed towards understanding the reduction of oxygen gas to water on supported metal nanoparticles for fuel cell catalysis. This project uses absorption of infrared light to learn about intermediates in this reaction as it occurs on metal and novel core-shell metal nanoparticle materials. Importance for society: Fuel cells are devices that convert a chemical (fuel) into electricity and are promising as part of a sustainable energy system for the future. Suitable fuels include hydrogen gas, ethanol and methanol, and use of these fuels is coupled to conversion of oxygen to water to produce electricity. The conversion of fuel and oxygen molecules occurs best on a metal surface called a catalyst where the metal helps to destabilise these molecules and break them apart. Good catalysts have been developed for the fuel reactions, but the oxygen conversion still presents a major limitation in development of fuel cell technologies. To date, platinum has emerged as the best catalyst for destabilising oxygen and turning it into water but platinum is even more expensive than gold and hence is undesirable for commercial use in large quantities. Moreover, pure platinum is still fairly slow at converting oxygen to water, so research is needed to find better catalysts for breaking down oxygen. This process which seems very simple actually follows a complex series of reaction steps which are not well understood, and learning about the complicated reaction mechanism is prerequisite to designing new well-defined core-shell catalysts. This project makes use of infrared light to study a range of known and new catalysts under real fuel cell conditions. Each molecule formed in the sequence of steps during conversion of oxygen to water absorbs a particular wavelength of infrared light and from this we can learn about which steps are involved on different metal catalyst surfaces. Problem/issue being addressed: The target of this research was to develop a method which allows us to look at oxygen conversion in a functioning fuel cell to see how the catalyst really behaves, and to use this method to test and design new improved catalysts. We have tested and compared the overall activities and stabilities of these new well-defined catalysts during oxygen conversion to water and investigated the complicated reaction steps of conversion of oxygen to water with the help of infrared light. Thus, the research should take us a step closer to technologies for a sustainable energy future.
Текст от CORDIS, на английски · Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз
Цел на проекта
The oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is critical in fuel cells (FC), batteries and corrosion. Sluggish kinetics of the ORR remains a key barrier to efficient electricity generation in FC operating on renewable fuels such as hydrogen or alcohols. Poor understanding of the ORR mechanism has hindered development of cost-effective and improved FC catalysts. This project aims to bring about a step change in development and understanding of ORR catalysts by (i) synthesising metal nanoparticles with a strained surface structure, and (ii) developing and implementing new in situ and operando infrared (IR) spectroscopic techniques to understand how strain impacts the ORR mechanism. Novel strained core-shell Pt-based catalysts will be developed, featuring a core of inexpensive metals including Ni, Co or Cu. For the first time, insight into the ORR mechanism for supported electrocatalysts under realistic catalytic turnover will be gained by modifying an approach to combining IR spectroscopy and electrochemistry developed in the Vincent group. The University of Oxford is uniquely suited for this ambitious project: the applicant will be hosted in a strong research culture in catalysis, have access to state-of-the-art research infrastructure and technical expertise in spectroscopy and materials characterisation and industrial collaborations. The fellow will receive broad-ranging training in the synthesis of catalysts and surface characterisation. The host team will benefit from her skills in in situ vibrational spectroscopy, especially spectral interpretation of ORR intermediates. This highly interdisciplinary project combines nanomaterial synthesis, spectroscopy and electrocatalysis, and has strong potential for generation of intellectual property and commercialisation of new catalysts for FC, aiding knowledge transfer between academic and industrial sectors. This will increase Europe’s competitiveness in FC and electrocatalysis, supporting Horizon 2020’s Energy Security goals.
Оригинален текст от CORDIS (на английски).
Участници
- THE CHANCELLOR, MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD · OxfordКоординаторОбединеното кралство
Връзки
Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз