Mastering the surface strain of platinum catalysts for efficient electrocatalysis

Platinum (Pt) has found wide use as an electrocatalyst for sustainable energy conversion systems^1–3. The activity of Pt is controlled by its electronic structure (typically, the d-band centre), which depends sensitively on lattice strain^4,5. This dependence can be exploited for catalyst design^4,6–8, and the use of core–shell structures and elastic substrates has resulted in strain-engineered Pt catalysts with drastically improved electrocatalytic performances^7,9–13. However, it is challenging to map in detail the strain–activity correlations in Pt-catalysed conversions, which can involve a number of distinct processes, and to identify the optimal strain modification for specific reactions. Here we show that when ultrathin Pt shells are deposited on palladium-based nanocubes, expansion and shrinkage of the nanocubes through phosphorization and dephosphorization induces strain in the Pt(100) lattice that can be adjusted from −5.1 per cent to 5.9 per cent. We use this strain control to tune the electrocatalytic activity of the Pt shells over a wide range, finding that the strain–activity correlation for the methanol oxidation reaction and hydrogen evolution reaction follows an M-shaped curve and a volcano-shaped curve, respectively. We anticipate that our approach can be used to screen out lattice strain that will optimize the performance of Pt catalysts—and potentially other metal catalysts—for a wide range of reactions.