{
  "abstract": "In electrocatalytic water splitting, ionomer-catalyst interactions can significantly influence electrochemical performance. Molecular metal–organic complexes offer a tractable platform to investigate such interactions. Here we report a novel nickel–2methylimidazole complex, [Ni(2-MeIm)4(NO3)]NO3, with Ni@N4O2 coordination environment. The structure of this new material is established by single-crystal X-ray diffraction and supported by vibrational spectroscopy and thermal analysis. We evaluate the complex as an oxygen evolution reaction precatalyst in 1.0mol L−1 KOH and show that its apparent activity depends strongly on the ionomer used in the catalyst ink. With Aemion+, an anion-exchange ionomer the catalyst reaches 10mAcm−2 current density at an overpotential of 0.331V, whereas the same catalyst formulated with Nafion exhibits a markedly reduced activity with an overpotential of 0.403V. The impedance spectra recorded at 1.6V vs RHE show considerable differences in charge-transfer resistances between the two formulations, consistent with differences in interfacial charge-transfer kinetics. We propose that specific catalyst–ionomer interactions may modulate active-site accessibility and the in situ transformation of the molecular precursor into catalytically competent NiOOH.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry",
    "University of Genoa",
    "National Interuniversity Consortium of Materials Science and Technology–INSTM"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1,
        2
      ],
      "name": "Neethu Kochukunnel Varghese",
      "orcid": "0009-0003-1749-2881"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Serena De Negri"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Pavlo Solokha"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1,
        2
      ],
      "name": "Antonio Comite"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/6ghk8ndvmdreb.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.26434/chemrxiv.15009627/v1",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "6ghk8ndvmdreb",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15009627/v1",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_source": "journal",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "2105|Electrocatalysts for Energy Conversion"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7214752432",
  "pdf_url": "https://chemrxiv.org/doi/pdf/10.26434/chemrxiv.15009627/v1",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-09-29",
  "publisher": "American Chemical Society (ACS)",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/6ghk8ndvmdreb.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:21Z",
      "native_id": "10.26434/chemrxiv.15009627",
      "source": "chemrxiv",
      "url": "https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15009627/v1"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "chemistry",
      "origin": "openalex:2105|Electrocatalysts for Energy Conversion",
      "subfield": "electrochemistry-energy"
    }
  ],
  "title": "A Novel Mononuclear Nickel Complex as a Precatalyst for Ionomer-Dependent Oxygen Evolution Reaction Activity",
  "title_text": "A Novel Mononuclear Nickel Complex as a Precatalyst for Ionomer-Dependent Oxygen Evolution Reaction Activity",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:17:21Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/6ghk8ndvmdreb",
  "venue": "ChemRxiv",
  "versions": []
}