Developments and perspectives of oxide-based catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction

Abstract

The growing need to store large amounts of energy produced from renewable sources has recently directed substantial R&D efforts towards water electrolysis technologies. Although the description of the electrochemical reaction of water electrolysis dates back to the late 18th century, improvements in terms of efficiency and stability are foreseen for a widespread market penetration of water electrolysers. Particular advances are required for the electrode materials catalysing the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) at the anode side, which has slow kinetics and thus is one of the major sources of the cell efficiency loss. In recent years, high-level theoretical tools and computational studies have led to significant progress in the atomic-level understanding of the OER and electrocatalyst behaviour. In parallel, several experimental studies have explored new catalytic materials with advanced properties and kinetics on a technical relevant level. This contribution summarises previous and the most recent theoretical predictions and experimental outcomes in the field of oxide-based catalysts for the OER, both operating in acidic and alkaline environments.