Mishra Hari Krishna, Barman Narad, Mondal Bidya, Jha Menaka, Thapa Ranjit, Mandal Dipankar
Quantum Materials and Devices Unit, Institute of Nano Science and Technology, Knowledge City, Sector-81, Mohali, 140306, India.
Energy and Environment Unit, Institute of Nano Science and Technology, Knowledge City, Sector-81, Mohali, 140306, India.
Small. 2024 Nov;20(48):e2402421. doi: 10.1002/smll.202402421. Epub 2024 Jul 15.
The increasing demand for clean hydrogen production over fossil fuels necessitates the development of sustainable piezoelectrochemical methods that can overcome the limitations of conventional electrocatalytic and photocatalytic approaches. In this regard, existing piezocatalysts face challenges related to their low piezoelectricity or active site coverage for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Driven by global environmental concerns, there is a compelling push to engineer practical materials for highly efficient HER. Herein, monoelemental 2D tellurium (Te) is presented as a class of layered chalcogenide with a non-centrosymmetric crystal structure (P321 space group). The refined Te nanosheets demonstrate an unprecedented highly efficient H production rate ≈9000 µmol g h under ultrasonic mechanical vibration due to built-in piezo-potential in the system. The remarkable piezocatalytic performance of Te nanosheets arises from a synergistic interplay between their semi-metallic nature, favorable free energy landscape, enhanced electrical conductivity and outstanding piezoelectricity. As a proof of concept, the theoretical approach based on Density Functional Theory (DFT) validates the findings due to the gradual exposure of active sites on the Te nanosheets leading to a self-optimized catalytic performance for hydrogen generation. Therefore, mechanically driven Te emerges as a promising piezocatalyst with the potential to revolutionize highly efficient and sustainable technology for futuristic applications.
与化石燃料相比，对清洁氢气生产的需求不断增加，这就需要开发可持续的压电化学方法，以克服传统电催化和光催化方法的局限性。在这方面，现有的压电催化剂面临着与低压电性或析氢反应（HER）的活性位点覆盖率相关的挑战。受全球环境问题的驱动，迫切需要设计出用于高效析氢反应的实用材料。在此，单元素二维碲（Te）作为一类具有非中心对称晶体结构（P321空间群）的层状硫族化物被提出。由于系统中存在内置压电势，经过优化的碲纳米片在超声机械振动下表现出前所未有的高效产氢速率，约为9000 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹。碲纳米片卓越的压电催化性能源于其半金属性质、有利的自由能态势、增强的电导率和出色的压电性之间的协同相互作用。作为概念验证，基于密度泛函理论（DFT）的理论方法验证了这些发现，因为碲纳米片上活性位点的逐渐暴露导致了用于氢气生成的自优化催化性能。因此，机械驱动的碲成为一种有前景的压电催化剂，有潜力彻底改变未来应用中的高效可持续技术。
