Eco-designed electrocatalysts for water splitting: A path toward carbon neutrality

Realizing sustainable hydrogen fuel production through water electrolysis is crucial to achieving carbon neutrality. However, the development of cost-effective electrocatalysts continues to be a challenge. Eco-designed electrocatalysts derived from wastes and naturally abundant materials have recently received increasing attention. The development of eco-designed electrocatalysts is of great environmental and economic significance and makes green hydrogen more accessible to the wider community. Here, recent advances in eco-designed electrocatalysts for water splitting are summarized. Eco-design strategies such as pyrolysis, ball milling, wet-chemical methods, and electrochemical treatment are first analyzed. Recent achievements in eco-designed electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), oxygen evolution reaction (OER), and overall water splitting (OWS) are then detailed, with an emphasis on analyzing the eco-design strategy-catalyst property-catalytic performance correlation. Perspectives in this blooming field for a greener hydrogen economy are finally outlined.