The discrepancy in oxygen evolution reaction catalyst lifetime explained: RDE vs MEA - Dynamicity within the catalyst layer matters

This study reveals the source of discrepancy between the lifetime of oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalysts determined by rotating disk electrode (RDE) measurements vs that obtained in a membrane electrode assembly (MEA) in an electrolyzer. We show that the accumulation of microscopic oxygen bubbles in the pores of the electro-catalyst layer during the OER takes place in both RDE and MEA measurements. However, this accumulation was found to be much more significant in RDE measurements, where the shielding of almost all of the catalyst active sites by gas bubbles leads to rapid performance deterioration. This decrease in performance, albeit largely reversible, was found to also induce irreversible catalyst degradation, which could be avoided if the accumulation of microscopic bubbles is prevented. This type of artefact results in vastly under-estimated catalyst lifetimes obtained by RDE experiments, resulting in values that are orders of magnitude shorter than those obtained using MEA measurements, and a hypothesis for this discrepancy will be proposed. Therefore, electrochemical cells with liquid electrolytes are not reliable for OER catalyst lifetime determination.