January 24, 2019
Keio University
Kitami Institute of Technology
Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo
A research team from Kitami Institute of Technology (Assistant Professor Shigeto Hirai, Professor Tomoya Ohno, and Professor Tsuyoshi Matsuda), a research team from Keio University (Associate Professor Yoichi Kambara of the Department of Applied Physics and Physico-Informatics, Faculty of Science and Technology; Professor Kenji Yasuoka of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Science and Technology; Yujiro Fujinori, a second-year doctoral student, and Kazunori Morita, a first-year doctoral student, of the Graduate School of Science and Technology), and Associate Professor Shunsuke Yagi of the Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, have successfully developed a superconductor-related material that acts as an exceptionally superior electrochemical catalyst (oxygen evolution catalyst) for the oxygen evolution reaction. The oxygen evolution reaction is a crucial electrode reaction in the energy sector, utilized in water electrolysis and metal-air secondary batteries. A particularly groundbreaking aspect of this achievement is the discovery of a multifunctional material that can act as both an oxygen evolution catalyst and a superconducting material depending on the amount of oxygen defects. This discovery was made by the Keio University research team, who created and analyzed a diagram that added a new axis representing oxygen evolution activity to the phase diagram of oxygen defect concentration versus electronic function. Based on these results, the development of oxygen evolution catalysts and superconducting materials is expected to advance dramatically.
For the full press release, please see below.