Single-atom platinum promotes Cu(I)/Cu(II) redox loop of Cu aerogels for efficient glucose electrooxidation

Abstract

Glucose oxidation reaction (GOR) is emerging as a promising alternative to the sluggish anodic oxygen evolution reaction for hydrogen production in energy-saving water electrolysis. Cu-based electrocatalysts hold natural superiority for GOR, which is limited by the slow Cu(I)/Cu(II) redox loop. Here, we synthesize Cu50Pt aerogels with Pt single atom (SA) to enhance GOR activity with an accelerated Cu(I)/Cu(II) redox loop compared to Cu aerogels. Experimental and theoretical investigations elucidate that Pt SA boosts the adsorption and activation capacity of OHads, promoting the hydroxylation of Cu(I) into Cu(II) active species through hydroxyl spillover. Moreover, the optimized electronic structure of Cu by Pt SA facilitates the glucose adsorption, the dehydrogenation process of C5H11O5CHO* to C5H11O5CO* and the release of products, thus promoting the hydroxyl deintercalation of Cu(II) sites into Cu(I). Notably, the Pt SA-assisted plasma effect of Cu further enhances the GOR activity and reduces the power consumption of hydrogen production by promoting the Cu(I)/Cu(II) redox loop. This work provides new insights into high-performance biomass electrooxidation catalysts via accelerating the redox cycle of reactive metal for electrochemical energy technologies.