Boosting PEMWE Performance Via the Local Electronic Regulation of Ir _0.5 Ru _0.5 /NbN Catalyst With Synergistic Vacancy and a Doping Engineering Stra

ABSTRACT

Proton exchange membrane water electrolysis (PEMWE) is an environmentally friendly and efficient technology for hydrogen production, playing a vital role in mitigating the fossil energy crisis and bridging renewable energy generation with hydrogen utilization. This work investigates an Ir _0.5 Ru _0.5 nanocluster supported on the nitrogen‐vacation‐rich niobium nitride (Ir _0.5 Ru _0.5 /NbN) for acidic oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Through defect engineering, the electron cloud density of Ir _0.5 Ru _0.5 active sites is precisely modulated, thereby reinforcing strong metal‐support interaction (SMSI) at interfaces. Concomitantly, Ir _0.5 Ru _0.5 nanoclusters with high‐density grain boundaries induce local charge rearrangement and orbital hybridization for precise d ‐band center downshift, are fabricated via a doping strategy, thereby accelerating the intrinsic reaction kinetics of OER. The Ir _0.5 Ru _0.5 /NbN catalyst exhibits excellent OER performance, achieving a low overpotential of 228 mV at 10 mA cm ⁻² and high stability, maintaining activity for 700 h without degradation. In addition, it presents outstanding performance as an anode in PEMWE with a cell voltage of 1.79 V at 2 A cm ⁻² . This work provides a viable and efficient approach to reduce Ir loading in PEMWE dramatically, offering a prospective strategy for the cost‐effective generation of green hydrogen.