Skip to main content
A Singapore Government Agency Website How to identify
Official website links end with .gov.sg
Secure websites use HTTPS
Look for a lock () or https:// as an added precaution. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.
Advanced Energy and Decarbonisation Office (AEDO)

Lewis Pairs of Single-Atom Catalysts for Boosted Alkaline Hydrogen Evolution Reactions

1 October 2026

Affiliation

NUS

Focus topic

Low-carbon H2 & Derivatives

-

Summary

This technology introduces Lewis acid-base pairs in single-atom catalysts (SACs) for alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). A phosphorus-coordinated ruthenium SAC (Ru₁/PNC) with a Ru₁-N₃P₁ configuration was synthesised, where the oxophilic P atom acts as the Lewis acid and the Ru centre as the Lewis base, synergistically facilitating water dissociation and intermediate desorption.

Key quantitative achievements:

  1. Overpotential of 16 mV at 10 mA cm⁻² (outperforming commercial Pt/C)

  2. Tafel slope of 39.4 mV dec⁻¹

  3. Mass activity of 10.6 A mg⁻¹Ru and TOF of 5.67 s⁻¹ at 100 mV overpotential (~8.4× and ~4.5× higher than Pt/C)

  4. 266-hour durability at 2 A cm⁻² in AEM electrolyser with decay rate of only 0.08 mV h⁻¹

  5. P-doping of commercial Ru/C and Pt/C reduced overpotentials by 48.2 mV and 24.7 mV respectively at 50 mA cm⁻²

  6. Estimated catalyst cost of ~6.1 SGD/g vs ~100 SGD/g for commercial Pt/C

What makes this novel compared to best-in-class technology?

Unlike existing bifunctional catalysts with ambiguous, uncontrollable interfaces, this technology introduces atomically precise Lewis acid-base pairs in SACs with a well-defined Ru₁-N₃P₁ configuration. This enables exact mechanistic understanding, shifts the rate-determining step from Volmer to Heyrovsky, and is directly extendable to upgrade commercial Pt/C and Ru/C catalysts.

TRL Level

 1-3

Relevant for

  1. Green hydrogen producers operating alkaline/AEM water electrolysers

  2. Industrial electrolyser manufacturers (AEM and alkaline stack producers)

  3. Fuel cell system integrators requiring high-purity hydrogen feedstock

  4. National energy agencies & hydrogen hubs investing in large-scale electrolysis infrastructure

  5. Commercial catalyst suppliers seeking drop-in performance upgrades for Pt/C and Ru/C

About

NUS logo

Inventors: Chen Wei

Affiliation: National University of Singapore (NUS), Department of Chemistry

Contact NUS for licensing opportunities and more information.

Please quote ID ref [2024-099] in your email.