A novel bulk-doped and surface-anchored heterostructure dramatically reduces expensive iridium loading while achieving high activity and long-term durability for proton exchange membrane water electrolysis.
As the global transition toward carbon neutrality accelerates, green hydrogen produced via proton exchange membrane water electrolysis (PEMWE) offers a promising pathway for clean energy storage and zero-emission industrial applications. However, widespread commercial adoption of PEMWE is severely bottlenecked by the anodic oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Current technologies rely heavily on scarce and expensive iridium (Ir) catalysts to withstand the highly acidic and corrosive operational environment.
To solve this critical bottleneck, a research team from Xi'an Jiaotong University and Nankai University has developed a facile, scalable synthetic strategy for a low-iridium heterostructured electrocatalyst ( IrOx/Ir-Co 3 O 4 ). Their study, published in ENGINEERING Energy , demonstrates a practical pathway to drastically reduce iridium usage while delivering exceptional catalytic activity and industrial-grade stability.
The catalyst is synthesized through a two-step electrochemical co-deposition process followed by programmed annealing. This strategy creates a unique heterostructure featuring bulk-doped Ir-Co 3 O 4 topped with surface-anchored IrOx species. Advanced spectroscopic characterizations and density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that the electronic interaction between the bulk-doped matrix and surface species alters the local charge distribution, enriching electron density at the active Ir sites. This electronic tuning optimizes the binding free energies of key oxygen-containing intermediates, accelerating OER kinetics and suppressing iridium dissolution during prolonged operation.
Key Research Highlights & Findings
"Bridging the gap between laboratory-scale innovations and industrial implementation requires synthetic methods that are inherently simple, reproducible, and scalable," noted the authors. "This work provides an integrated design strategy for low-precious-metal catalysts that meet the rigorous performance and stability requirements of commercial green hydrogen production."
Journal: ENGINEERING Energy
Read the full article for free: https://rdcu.be/fAter
Cite this article: Wang, Q., Liu, K., Dong, W., Chen, X., Wang, W., Fan, J., Zhang, Z., Shen, S., Wei, J., Luo, J., & Chen, J. (2026). Scalable synthesis of an IrOx/Ir-Co3O4 heterostructure for efficient and stable acidic oxygen evolution. ENGINEERING Energy , 20(5), 10869. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11708-026-1086-9
ENGINEERING Energy
News article
Scalable synthesis of an IrOx/Ir-Co3O4 heterostructure for efficient and stable acidic oxygen evolution
18-Jul-2026