WestCHEM, School of Chemistry, University of Glasgow , University Avenue, Glasgow G12 8QQ, U.K.
J Am Chem Soc. 2013 Sep 18;135(37):13656-9. doi: 10.1021/ja4071893. Epub 2013 Sep 6.
Electron-coupled-proton buffers (ECPBs) allow H2 and O2 evolution to be separated from each other in time during the electrolysis of water. Natural photosynthetic systems achieve an analogous feat during water splitting and employ a range of intermediate redox mediators such as quinone derivatives to aid this process. Drawing on this natural example, we show that a low molecular weight quinone derivative is capable of decoupling H2 evolution from O2 evolution at scale during electrochemical water splitting. This work could significantly lower the cost of ECPBs, paving the way for their more widespread adoption in water splitting.
电子耦合质子缓冲剂 (ECPBs) 可以在水电解过程中将 H2 和 O2 的产生在时间上彼此分离。天然光合作用系统在水分解过程中实现了类似的壮举，并采用了一系列中间氧化还原介体，如醌衍生物，以辅助这一过程。借鉴这一自然实例，我们表明，一种低分子量的醌衍生物能够在电化学水分解过程中大规模地将 H2 的产生与 O2 的产生解耦。这项工作可以显著降低 ECPB 的成本，为其在水分解中的更广泛应用铺平道路。
