Models and Mechanisms of Oxygen Evolution Reaction on Electrocatalytic Surface

Abstract

A profound change has taken place in understanding surface electrochemistry during water-splitting reaction due to the accumulated knowledge over the past decades and supported by recent advances in spectroscopic techniques and high-performance quantum chemical simulations. The design of electrocatalysts has been improved due to better understanding of surface structures of electrocatalysts and their active sites. This review provides insights into both theoretical and experimental electrochemistry that are directed towards a better understanding of the rate-determining step of water splitting, i.e., oxygen evolution reaction (OER). The emphasis of this review is on the origin of the electrocatalytic activity of nanostructured catalysts toward the aforementioned reaction by correlating the electrode performance with their intrinsic electrochemical properties. Also, the design aspects of acidic- and alkaline-medium electrocatalysts is discussed from preliminary discussion on active site engineering to a more applied concern of achieving highly stable and active electrode fabrication. The design concerns while choosing a support for OER electrocatalyst has also been discussed. At the end, challenges in electrolyser designs and problems faced by the industry to commercialize the electrolyser in a cost-effective manner have been discussed.