Silver Clusters with Adatoms as a Catalyst for the Oxygen Reduction Reaction

Developing highly active and low-cost catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is critical for renewable energy devices such as metal-air cells and fuel cells. In this work, we report an active ORR catalyst, Ag clusters with adatoms, which can be facilely produced by a pulse electrolysis method. The silver adatom on the silver cluster can reduce the coordination number, upshift the Ag d-band center, lower the ORR reaction barrier, and eventually transform the inactive Ag into a highly active catalyst. As a result, the catalyst exhibits high activity and stability, which are superior to ever-reported silver-based catalysts and even the commercial Pt/C catalyst. © 2023 American Chemical Society.