Boosting Water Oxidation through In Situ Electroconversion of Manganese Gallide: An Intermetallic Precursor Approach

Abstract

Abstract For the first time, the manganese gallide (MnGa 4 ) served as an intermetallic precursor, which upon in situ electroconversion in alkaline media produced high‐performance and long‐term‐stable MnO x ‐based electrocatalysts for water oxidation. Unexpectedly, its electrocorrosion (with the concomitant loss of Ga) leads simultaneously to three crystalline types of MnO x minerals with distinct structures and induced defects: birnessite δ‐MnO 2 , feitknechtite β‐MnOOH, and hausmannite α‐Mn 3 O 4 . The abundance and intrinsic stabilization of Mn III /Mn IV active sites in the three MnO x phases explains the superior efficiency and durability of the system for electrocatalytic water oxidation. After electrophoretic deposition of the MnGa 4 precursor on conductive nickel foam (NF), a low overpotential of 291 mV, comparable to that of precious‐metal‐based catalysts, could be achieved at a current density of 10 mA cm −2 with a durability of more than five days.