Abstract
Engineering of functional materials relies heavily on the understanding of structure-function relationships. Synchrotron-based Near-Ambient Pressure X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (NAP-XPS) has recently emerged as a powerful tool for in situ and operando studies of energy-related materials (e.g. batteries, fuel and electrolysis cells). It allows one probing the interfacial polarization, detect reaction intermediates, follow red-ox transformations of species located either at the electrode or electrolyte site of the electrified interface, and observe segregation/dissolution phenomena.
We will start with a short introduction into electrocatalysis, and discuss challenges and opportunities for operando studies of electrocatalytic materials with photomemission spectroscopies. We will then discuss some case studies [1-4] illustrating capabilities of NAPXPS and NEXAFS for the investigation of electrocatalytic materials for fuel and electrolysis cells during dynamic operation conditions.