Heterogeneous electrocatalytic OER by sol-gel electrode with entrapped Na3[Ru2(µ-CO3)4]; the effect of NaHCO3.

The Na3[Ru2(µ-CO3)4] complex is acting as a water oxidation catalyst in a homogeneous system. Due to the significance of heterogeneous systems and the effect of bicarbonate on the kinetic, we studied the bicarbonate effect on the heterogeneous electrocatalyst by entrapping the Na3[Ru2(µ-CO3)4] complex in a sol-gel matrix. We have developed two types of sol-gel electrodes, which differ by the precursor, and are demonstrating their stability over a minimum of 200 electrochemical cycles. The pH increases affected the currents and kcat for both types of electrodes, and their hydrophobicity, which was obtained from the precursor type, influenced the electrocatalytic process rate. The results indicate that NaHCO3 has an important role in the catalytic activity of the presented heterogeneous systems; without NaHCO3, the diffusing species is probably OH-, which undergoes diffusion via the Grotthuss mechanism. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to present a simple and fast one-step entrapment process for the Na3[Ru2(µ-CO3)4] complex by the sol-gel method under standard laboratory conditions. The results contribute to optimizing the WSP, ultimately helping expand the usage of hydrogen as a green and more readily available energy source.