An innovative method to improve catalysts used for water splitting has been developed by Scientists at the Centre for Nano and Soft Matter Sciences (CeNS) in Bengaluru

¨     An innovative method to improve catalysts used for water splitting has been developed by Scientists at the Centre for Nano and Soft Matter Sciences (CeNS) in Bengaluru.

¨     Water splitting is a key process in generating clean hydrogen.

¨     This development deals with challenge in the oxygen evolution reaction (OER).

¨     Oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is slower and more energy-intensive than the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER).

¨     The focus of scientists was on improving coordination polymers.

¨     Coordination polymers are a class of materials formed by metal ions and organic molecules that are used in electrolysis.

¨     They often show limited activity because solvent molecules block many of their active sites available for reactions.

¨     Scientists at CeNS used argon plasma to activate the COPs by producing coordinatively unsaturated metal sites.

¨     Analyses confirmed that Ni- and Co-based polymers were more active without altering their bulk framework.

¨     The study was published in '"ACS Applied Nano Materials".

¨     This method has the potential to speed up the development of affordable hydrogen energy solutions.