Pamella Rodrigues

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Water electrolysis has been considered an excellent option for green hydrogen production. This process involves two half-reactions, the hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions (HER and OER). Among the catalysts studied to improve OER kinetics, nickel selenides stand out for their ability to adsorb reaction intermediates. However, their practical application is limited by low structural stability and a limited number of active sites available. Chemical and morphological modification of these materials can increase the number of active sites and regulate their electronic structure, thereby improving their catalytic activity.

Therefore, the primary objective of my doctoral research, conducted within the Electrochemistry Group in Brazil, is to investigate the catalytic activity of nickel selenide-based materials modified with small amounts of noble oxide for OER in an alkaline medium. During my tenure at the Electrochemical Energy Conversion (ECC) group, I will concentrate on studying the stability of these materials using advanced techniques such as electrochemical scanning flow cell (SFC) coupled with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) to analyze material dissolution under electrolysis conditions. This study is expected to provide a comprehensive understanding of the electrochemical kinetics and degradation processes of nickel-based materials, thereby contributing to the development of more robust and efficient electrocatalysts for water electrolysis.