Coupling dynamic catalyst regeneration with convective transport enables stable and selective glycerol electrooxidation on platinum.
4 affiliations
- 1Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London London SW7 2AZ UK [email protected].
- 2Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles California CA 90095 USA.
- 3Advanced Institute for Materials Research (AIMR), Tohoku University 2-1-1 Katahira, Aoba-ku Sendai 980-8577 Japan.
- 4Department of Materials, Imperial College London London SW7 2AZ UK.
Abstract
Electrochemical glycerol oxidation on platinum is governed by surface poisoning, competing faradaic and non-faradaic pathways, and mass-transport effects, complicating mechanistic understanding and catalyst optimization. Here, we combine controlled hydrodynamics with dynamic potential modulation to enhance glycerol electrooxidation without complex catalyst design. Using a rotating polycrystalline platinum cylinder electrode in alkaline electrolyte, we develop a three-step pulsed potential protocol comprising glycerol oxidation, oxidative removal of poisoning intermediates, and surface regeneration via oxide reduction. The optimized protocol sustains high activity and stability, delivering current densities up to 12-14 mA cm-2 and increasing glycerate faradaic efficiency to ∼40%. Mild rotation maximises activity, while higher rotation rates enhance glyceraldehyde removal and its non-faradaic conversion to lactate, increasing lactate faradaic efficiency from 2% to 20%. These findings demonstrate that synergistic control of catalyst regeneration and hydrodynamics provides a powerful strategy to tune activity and selectivity in glycerol electrooxidation.
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BibTeX
@article{plubin2026coupling,
title = {{Coupling dynamic catalyst regeneration with convective transport enables stable and selective glycerol electrooxidation on platinum.}},
author = {Kanyapat Plub-In and Hanzhi Ye and Carlos G Morales-Guio and Maria Magdalena Titirici and Ifan E L Stephens and Anna Hankin},
journal = {EES catalysis},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1039/d6ey00090h},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42997274},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Coupling dynamic catalyst regeneration with convective transport enables stable and selective glycerol electrooxidation on platinum.
AU - Kanyapat Plub-In
AU - Hanzhi Ye
AU - Carlos G Morales-Guio
AU - Maria Magdalena Titirici
AU - Ifan E L Stephens
AU - Anna Hankin
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/19
JO - EES catalysis
DO - 10.1039/d6ey00090h
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42997274
AB - Electrochemical glycerol oxidation on platinum is governed by surface poisoning, competing faradaic and non-faradaic pathways, and mass-transport effects, complicating mechanistic understanding and catalyst optimization. Here, we combine controlled hydrodynamics with dynamic potential modulation to enhance glycerol electrooxidation without complex catalyst design. Using a rotating polycrystalline platinum cylinder electrode in alkaline electrolyte, we develop a three-step pulsed potential protocol comprising glycerol oxidation, oxidative removal of poisoning intermediates, and surface regeneration via oxide reduction. The optimized protocol sustains high activity and stability, delivering current densities up to 12-14 mA cm-2 and increasing glycerate faradaic efficiency to ∼40%. Mild rotation maximises activity, while higher rotation rates enhance glyceraldehyde removal and its non-faradaic conversion to lactate, increasing lactate faradaic efficiency from 2% to 20%. These findings demonstrate that synergistic control of catalyst regeneration and hydrodynamics provides a powerful strategy to tune activity and selectivity in glycerol electrooxidation.
SN - 2753-801X
ER -