Single-atom catalyst drives key water-splitting step

Abstract

An easy-to-prepare catalyst consisting of isolated metal atoms embedded at various points across functionalized graphene sheets can carry out a key step in water splitting, according to a study (Nat. Catal. 2018, DOI: 10.1038/s41929-018-0158-6). If water could be split easily and inexpensively into molecular hydrogen (H2) and oxygen (O2), the world could draw a nearly limitless supply of clean-burning hydrogen fuel from the oceans. Inspired by nature’s use of a metal cluster (CaMn4O5) to generate O2 from water during photosynthesis, scientists have designed various multimetal-atom catalysts to facilitate the process, called the water oxidation reaction (WOR). Several researchers have shown that various synthetic manganese-cluster catalysts actively mediate WOR. What remained unknown is whether a simpler, less expensive catalyst based on single manganese atoms rather than clusters can do the job actively and energy efficiently. Yes, it can, concludes a team led by Can Li of the Dalian Institute of Chemical