. Notably, the catalyst demonstrates enhanced durability, retaining 87% of its initial activity after 165 min continuous operation. Structural and spectroscopic analyses, supported by density functional theory calculations, indicate that the NC shell modulates the electronic structure of the RuCo alloy through interfacial Ru-N interactions, leading to optimized adsorption energetics and suppressed metal dissolution during operation. This work highlights carbon encapsulation as an effective materials design strategy to stabilize Ru-based alloy catalysts while maintaining high OER activity in acidic environments, offering practical insights for the development of durable electrocatalysts for PEMWE.
Kim et al. (Mon,) studied this question.