Site-specific synergy in heterogeneous single atoms for efficient oxygen evolution.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 40089491.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-025-57864-w and PMC identifier 11910543.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Heterogeneous single-atom systems demonstrate potential to break performance limitations of single-atom catalysts through synergy interactions. The synergy in heterogeneous single atoms strongly dependes on their anchoring sites. Herein, we reveal the site-specific synergy in heterogeneous single atoms for oxygen evolution. The Ru<sub>T</sub>Ir<sub>V</sub>/CoOOH is fabricated by anchoring Ru single atoms onto three-fold facial center cubic hollow sites and Ir single atoms onto oxygen vacancy sites on CoOOH. Moreover, Ir<sub>T</sub>Ru<sub>V</sub>/CoOOH is also prepared by switching the anchoring sites of single atoms. Electrochemical measurements demonstrate the Ru<sub>T</sub>Ir<sub>V</sub>/CoOOH exhibits enhanced OER performance compared to Ir<sub>T</sub>Ru<sub>V</sub>/CoOOH. In-situ spectroscopic and mechanistic studies indicate that Ru single atoms at three-fold facial center cubic hollow sites serve as adsorption sites for key reaction intermediates, while Ir single atoms at oxygen vacancy sites stabilize the *OOH intermediates via hydrogen bonding interactions. This work discloses the correlation between the synergy in heterogeneous single atoms and their anchoring sites.