Aging iridium oxide catalyst inks: a formulation strategy to enhance ink processability for polymer electrolyte membrane water electrolyzers.

Iridium oxide (IrO) is recognized as a state-of-art catalyst for anodes of low-temperature polymer-electrolyte membrane water electrolyzers (PEMWE), one of the promising clean energy technologies to produce hydrogen, a critical energy carrier for decarbonization. However, typical IrO ink formulations are challenging to process in liquid-film coating processes because of their poor stability against gravitational settling and low viscosities. Here we report on time evolution of the microstructure of concentrated IrO inks in a water-rich dispersion medium, probed using a combination of rheology and X-ray scattering for up to four days.

X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy Analysis of Nafion-Containing Samples: Pitfalls, Protocols, and Perceptions of Physicochemical Properties.

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) is one of the most common techniques used to analyze the surface composition of catalysts and support materials used in polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells and electrolyzers, providing important insights for further improvement of their properties. Characterization of catalyst layers (CLs) is more challenging, which can be at least partially attributed to the instability of ionomer materials such as Nafion during measurements. This work explores the stability of Nafion during XPS measurements, illuminating and addressing Nafion degradation concerns.

Temporal genomics help in deciphering neutral and adaptive patterns in the contemporary evolution of kelp populations.

The impact of climate change on populations will be contingent upon their contemporary adaptive evolution. In this study, we investigated the contemporary evolution of 4 populations of the cold-water kelp Laminaria digitata by analyzing their spatial and temporal genomic variations using ddRAD-sequencing. These populations were sampled from the center to the southern margin of its north-eastern Atlantic distribution at 2 time points, spanning at least 2 generations.