Microstructural origin of locally enhanced CO2 electroreduction activity on gold.
Ruperto G MarianoMinkyung KangOluwasegun J WahabIan J McPhersonJoshua A RabinowitzPatrick R UnwinMatthew W KananPublished in: Nature materials (2021)
Understanding how the bulk structure of a material affects catalysis on its surface is critical to the development of actionable catalyst design principles. Bulk defects have been shown to affect electrocatalytic materials that are important for energy conversion systems, but the structural origins of these effects have not been fully elucidated. Here we use a combination of high-resolution scanning electrochemical cell microscopy and electron backscatter diffraction to visualize the potential-dependent electrocatalytic carbon dioxide [Formula: see text] electroreduction and hydrogen [Formula: see text] evolution activity on Au electrodes and probe the effects of bulk defects. Comparing colocated activity maps and videos to the underlying microstructure and lattice deformation supports a model in which CO2 electroreduction is selectively enhanced by surface-terminating dislocations, which can accumulate at grain boundaries and slip bands. Our results suggest that the deliberate introduction of dislocations into materials is a promising strategy for improving catalytic properties.
Keyphrases
- high resolution
- reduced graphene oxide
- carbon dioxide
- gold nanoparticles
- white matter
- electron microscopy
- metal organic framework
- ionic liquid
- smoking cessation
- human milk
- single cell
- stem cells
- high throughput
- cell therapy
- room temperature
- quantum dots
- molecularly imprinted
- label free
- crystal structure
- simultaneous determination