Advanced Nanomaterials for Electrocatalysis
A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Cross-Field Chemistry".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2025 | Viewed by 25
Special Issue Editor
Interests: electrochemistry and electrocatalysis; fuel cells; catalysts for the oxidation of alcohols; oxygen reduction reaction; environmental electrochemistry; nanomaterials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The drastically increasing demand for energy worldwide as a result of social and economic trends, and environmental degradation coupled with climate change caused by the use of fossil fuels, motivates scientists to search for clean energy conversion and energy storage technologies environmentally friendly. Among several energy conversion and storage strategies, electrochemical energy conversion and electrochemical energy storage are promising alternatives, as fuel cell systems convert the energy of a fuel into electrical energy with zero or little CO2 generated per kWh of energy converted. Moreover, electrochemical systems like capacitors and batteries can store energy for extended periods.
One electrochemical energy conversion system is fuel cells that work with fuel supplied at the anode and an oxidant provided at the cathode. The catalyst in these electrodes promotes electrochemical reactions for energy conversion, the anode of the fuel cell can be supplied by hydrogen, and the cathode can be supplied by oxygen; the products are water, heat, and electrical energy. In addition, liquid-based fuel cells possess enormous potential for practical applications based on easier manipulation, transportation, and storage. The fuel cells working with low-molecular-weight alcohols such as methanol, ethanol, glycerol, and formic acid have shown promising performances in acidic and alkaline media.
Moreover, green hydrogen can be obtained from water split by sunlight, making the energy conversion more sustainable and environmentally friendly. Currently, almost all hydrogen used in industries is produced from fossil fuels and cracking natural hydrocarbons. H2 has several industrial applications and is nowadays considered a key for energy production and storage in the framework of energy transition. The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) on a cathode and anode, respectively, make up the green and renewable gas generation; instead, HER is a slow process and the electrocatalyst development required decreases the electrochemical overpotential and, thus, HER effectiveness.
This Special Issue will focus on the development of materials for electrocatalysis toward several applications such as energy conversion in fuel cell systems, including anode materials, cathode materials, electrolyte development, and energy storage in capacitors and batteries; materials for hydrogen evolution reaction, oxygen evolution reaction, and other electrochemical catalyst reactions such as nitride reduction reactions; and advanced oxidative processes for emerging pollutants’ degradation.
Submissions of original research articles, short communications, case studies, and review articles covering the following topics are encouraged:
- Electrocatalysis for alcohol oxidation: synthesis, physico-chemical characterization, and fuel cell studies.
- Emerging approaches for improving the performance and selectivity of alcohol electro-oxidation processes.
- Approaches for reducing fuel crossover through polymeric electrolytes, including the preparation of composites, the addition of fillers, and blends.
- Development of efficient and fuel-tolerant electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction in capacitors and batteries.
- Emerging approaches for improving water splitting toward the hydrogen evolution reaction, oxygen evolution reaction, and gas separation.
- Electrocatalysis for hydrogen evolution reaction performance and decreasing overpotential.
- Nanomaterials for advanced oxidative processes for emerging pollutants’ degradation and application.
Practical applications of the listed topics in fuel cells. The focus is on studies for liquid fuel cells, although studies on high-temperature polymeric electrolyte membrane fuel cells are also welcomed, provided that the abovementioned fuels are used.
Prof. Dr. Flávio Colmati
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- water spitting
- HER
- OER
- AOP
- fuel cell
- alcohol oxidation
- energy conversion
- electrocatalysis
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