Project Abstract

The Project and its outcomes’ target is an important contribution to solving a worldwide environmental issue. Efficient electrolysis of water is commonly seen as a way to accumulate the excess energy that may be produced by some renewable sources, as photovoltaics. This excess could power the electrolysis process, which yields hydrogen, i.e., the fuel with the highest energy density per volume unit. This concept is in line with hydrogen economy perspectives. The crucial element for water electrolysis is an efficient electrode design which enables a low split potential alongside high durability. Another key matter is the elimination of platinum from electrode manufacturing. The Project’s aim is the synthesis of such electrode materials and practical verification of their application-oriented features. The main objectives are to obtain catalysts, i.e., 3D-structured graphene enriched with heteroatoms, metal oxides, and perovskite metal oxides. The key innovation is the synthesis of new electrode noble-metal-free materials itself. The catalysts most promising from the perspective of water splitting will be discerned and described in detail on the basis of physical and chemical analyses. The synthesis strategy will be established taking into account the high variability of metal oxides, heteroatom dopants, and perovskite metal oxides. The chemical state of atoms will be examined and characterized to make it possible to choose the most effective catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction and hydrogen evolution reaction. This way, we will gain a precise determination of catalyst site types, which will be particularly important for the interpretation of electrochemical measurements. Important step is determine the relationship of morphology and elemental composition with the materials’ electrochemical and photoelectrochemical (water splitting) activity, as well as their hydrogen evolution reaction activity in contact with aqueous electrolytes.