Investigation of active electrocatalytic centers under reaction conditions using operando microscopies

• DOI: 10.1016/j.coelec.2023.101386
• Publication Date: 2023-09-07T20:58:21Z
• Authors: Haiting Yu; Christian Schott; Thorsten Schmidt; Peter M. Schneider; Kun-Ting Song; Qiwei Zhang; Andrea Capogrosso; Lewin Deville; Elena Gubanova; Aliaksandr S. Ban...
• Keywords: Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy; Electrochemical energy conversion

Electrocatalysis is crucial for transitioning from a fossil fuel-based to a renewable energy society. In situ identification of electrocatalytic active centers is required to realize this vision, enabling the design of efficient and stable catalysts and providing insight into reaction steps. In this manuscript, we analyze the recent progress in the observation of active sites in a wide range of electrocatalysts and various electrocatalytic reactions by employing operando microscopies, including liquid cell transmission electron microscopy (LCTEM), electrochemical scanning tunneling microscopy (EC-STM), scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) and scanning electrochemical cell microscopy (SECCM). We showcase their capability to correlate the electrocatalytic activity with catalyst topological and structural properties.