Interface engineering of metal nanomaterials enhance the electrocatalytic water splitting and fuel cell performance

Abstract We conclude this review with a perspective of interface engineering strategy for enhancing the activity of metal catalysts for electrocatalytic water splitting and direct alcohol fuel cells (DAFCs). The organic ligands could modify the surface of metal nanostructures, and also could affect the electronic structure of metals. Due to the specific physical and chemical properties of organic ligands, the metal nanostructures exhibit super catalytic selectivity to some reaction precursors. This minireview focuses on evaluating the catalytic mechanisms for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER), alcohol oxygen reaction (AOR), and oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), which are the main reactions for water splitting and DAFCs, respectively, which are driven by interface engineering. This new strategy provides an approach for the design and synthesis of nanostructures modifying by organic ligands, providing a reasonable outlook of their extensive application in chemical energy conversion and storage, and selective fuel production.