Spotlight October 2023: Improved hydrogen production through novel catalyst made of three metals

Hydrogen is one of the important energy carriers of the future when it comes to climate-relevant energy supply. For example, surplus electricity from wind turbines or solar plants can be converted into hydrogen, allowing the otherwise unused energy to be stored for longer periods. This hydrogen can be used to power trucks and buses for local public transport as well as other vehicles in an environmentally and climate-friendly way, or it can be converted back into electricity. However, the production of hydrogen using electricity has so far been relatively inefficient, so catalysts are being feverishly sought to help improve this process.

One possibility now seems to have been discovered in a novel catalyst. Korean researchers have synthesized this catalyst from the three known metals nickel, palladium and platinum, which enables the production of hydrogen about 8 times better than previous platinum-carbon catalysts. This high activity of the catalyst is possible due to the very small subunits in nanometer size. Nickel/platinum and palladium/platinum interfaces are created, which are arranged in a specific order to each other and thus considerably facilitate the processes of hydrogen production.

Such and other expected developments in catalyst chemistry will help secure future energy supplies and contribute to a sustainable and environmentally friendly energy supply.

Original publication:

Gu, B.S., Dutta, S., Hong, Y.R., Ngome Okello, O.F., Im, H., Ahn, S., Choi, S.Y., Woo Han, J., Ryu, S., and Lee, I.S. (2023). Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 62, e202307816.