Revealing the radial distribution of catalytic Pt atoms in eutectic alloy nanoparticles for efficient water splitting reaction

Project Member(s): Ton-That, C.

Funding or Partner Organisation: The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (Australian Synchrotron Access Program (Beamtime))
The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (Australian Synchrotron Access Program (Beamtime))

Start year: 2024

Summary: The experiment aims to investigate the chemical structure and distribution of platinum (Pt) atoms and other dissolved metals in gallium-based eutectic nanoparticles. These nanoparticles exhibit exceptionally high hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activities due to the synergistic effects of multiple metallic elements. The proposed measurements (photon-energy-dependent photoemission spectroscopies and XANES) will provide insights into the solvation and chemical structures of Pt, Au and Cu atoms and their dispersibility as well as the electronic structure of the nanoparticles before and after water electrolysis. The data from these measurements will be correlated with microstructural, optical and electrocatalytic characteristics that have been identified.

Publications:

Bardet, L, Zavabeti, A, Salih, A, Zhang, D, Kilani, M, Ghasemian, MB, Tadich, A, Sun, Y, Johnston, L, Wang, D, Seidel, J, Allioux, F, Ton‐That, C, Tang, J & Kalantar‐Zadeh, K 2025, 'High‐Entropy Liquid Metal Process for Transparent Ultrathin p‐Type Gallium Oxide', Advanced Functional Materials, vol. 35, no. 32.
View/Download from: Publisher's site

Irvine, CP, Murdoch, BJ, Field, MR, Matar, F, Phillips, MR & Ton-That, C 2025, 'Indentation-induced formation of vacancy defects in β-Ga2O3 crystals', Applied Surface Science, vol. 712, pp. 164217-164217.
View/Download from: Publisher's site

Matar, F, Salih, AK, Sandana, VE, Teherani, FH, Phillips, MR, Rogers, DJ & Ton-That, C 2025, 'Structural and Electronic Properties of β-(AlxGa1–x)2O3 Active Layers for Space-Qualified Solar-Blind Photodetectors', ACS Applied Electronic Materials, vol. 7, no. 14, pp. 6469-6475.
View/Download from: Publisher's site

Allioux, F, Nazari, S, Ghasemian, MB, Zavabeti, A, Pei, Z, Leverett, J, Rafiezadeh, S, Salih, AK, Irvine, CP, Baharfar, M, Bardet, L, Widjajana, MS, Chi, Y, Esrafilzadeh, D, Jalili, AR, Haghdadi, N, Tang, J, Laws, KJ, Ton‐That, C, Daeneke, T, Daiyan, R, Rahim, MA & Kalantar‐Zadeh, K 2024, 'Atomic Dispersion via High‐Entropy Liquid Metal Alloys', Small Structures, vol. 5, no. 12.
View/Download from: Publisher's site

Rafiezadeh, S, Zavabeti, A, Tang, J, Christofferson, AJ, Meftahi, N, Phillips, MR, Kalantar‐Zadeh, K, Ghasemian, MB & Ton‐That, C, 'Bandgap Tuning of β‐(AlxGa1‐x)2O3 Nanosheets via Liquid Metal Interface Engineering', Advanced Optical Materials.
View/Download from: Publisher's site

FOR Codes: Nanotechnology, Surface properties of condensed matter, Expanding knowledge in the physical sciences

Acknowledgement of Country

UTS acknowledges the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the Boorooberongal people of the Dharug Nation, the Bidiagal people and the Gamaygal people upon whose ancestral lands our university stands. We would also like to pay respect to the Elders both past and present, acknowledging them as the traditional custodians of knowledge for these lands.