路易斯酸界面效应提升质子电导率实现高耐久低铱质子交换膜水电解OA

Insufficient protonic conductivity in the anode catalyst layer is a major bottleneck to achieving high performance,durability,and cost-effectiveness in proton exchange membrane water electrolysis(PEMWE)with ultralow iridium loading.Herein,a homogeneous and electron-conducting network of IrO2 nanoparticles was constructed on a Lewis acid-rich ZrO2-x support(denoted as LA-IrO2/ZrO2-x).This design aimed to facilitate proton migration via Lewis acid-mediated interfacial effects while maintaining efficient electronic conductivity.The LA-IrO2/ZrO2-x nanocatalyst with an ultralow iridium loading possesses high surface Lewis acidity,thus exhibiting significantly enhanced proton conductivity along with reduced catalyst layer resistance and improved utilization at high current density.In practical PEMWE applications,the LA-IrO2/ZrO2-x anode with a low Ir loading of 0.34 mg/cm2 achieved 1.83 V at 3 A/cm2 and 2.36 V at 8 A/cm2.Moreover,it also exhibited remarkable operational stability,operating continuously for over 1000 h at 1 A/cm2 with a negligible voltage decay rate of only～4.06 μV/h.This work provides a viable strategy for selectively enhancing protonic conductivity without compromising electron transport,thereby paving the way for durable,high-performance PEMWE with ultralow iridium loading.