Study of carbon-supported IrO2 and RuO2 for use in the hydrogen evolution reaction in a solid polymer electrolyte electrolyzer

Carbon-supported IrO2 and RuO2 were prepared using an incipient wetness method and were then calcinated at various temperatures. IrO2/C and RuO2/C are less expensive than the conventional Pt/C material and more stable than metal Ni in an acidic electrolyte. Moreover, IrO2/C and RuO2/C are not influenced by under potential deposition (UPD) and show lower sensitivity to poisoning by Ni or Fe impurities. The physical properties of IrO2/C and RuO2/C were investigated via XRD and TEM. Cyclic voltammograms (CV) and Tafel plots were used to provide information regarding surface redox reaction and electrocatalytic activity. The activity and durability of IrO2/C and RuO2/C were studied after prolonged potential cycling between −0.3 and 0.3 VSCE. After comparison of Tafel plots of Pt/C and IrO2/C after activation, it was observed that they have similar electrocatalytic activities in a hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). A single cell test with solid polymer electrolyte (SPE) proved that the performance of IrO2/C (0.5 mg cm−2) was similar to that of Pt/C (0.5 mg cm−2).