Researchers in South Korea have developed a new catalyst design strategy that boosts the efficiency of reactions used in batteries and hydrogen fuel cells without changing the catalyst itself.

The team, led by Professor Seung Jun Hwang of POSTECH and Professor Jaeyune Ryu of Seoul National University, found that adjusting the electrical environment around a catalyst can significantly improve its performance. The approach could help reduce energy losses in next-generation energy systems while improving efficiency and stability.

Catalysts are materials that speed up chemical reactions. They are essential components in technologies such as hydrogen fuel cells and metal-air batteries, where they help drive the reactions that generate electricity.

Traditionally, researchers improve catalysts by changing the central metal, such as iron, cobalt, or nickel, or by redesigning the surrounding molecular structure known as a ligand. The new study takes a different route by leaving the catalyst largely unchanged and instead modifying the electric field around it.

Electric fields drive gains

The researchers demonstrated that placing positively charged ions, known as cations, near the catalyst creates a localized electric field that influences how reactions proceed.

The team focused on the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), a key electrochemical process that generates electricity in fuel cells and metal-air batteries. Improving this reaction has long been a goal because it directly affects device efficiency and energy consumption.

Experiments showed that the share of the desired reaction pathway increased from roughly 12 percent to as much as 52 percent when the electric field was introduced. This allowed the reaction to occur more efficiently while requiring less energy.

According to the researchers, the results suggest that catalyst performance can be tuned through environmental control rather than by redesigning catalyst materials from scratch. Such an approach could simplify future catalyst development and lower costs associated with creating new materials.

Beyond batteries and fuel

The implications may extend beyond energy storage and hydrogen technologies. The researchers believe the same principle could be applied to catalysts used for carbon dioxide conversion and environmentally friendly hydrogen production.

Many clean-energy technologies rely on catalysts to control complex chemical reactions. Being able to improve those reactions by adjusting local electrical conditions could provide a new tool for designing more efficient systems.

“This study demonstrates that reaction properties can be precisely controlled solely through the surrounding electrical environment, without changing the structure of the catalyst itself,” said Hwang.

The researchers say the findings open a new direction for catalyst engineering by shifting attention from the catalyst’s structure to its operating environment.

The oxygen reduction reaction examined in the study is a core process in hydrogen fuel cells, which generate electricity from hydrogen and oxygen, as well as metal-air batteries that use oxygen from the atmosphere as part of the energy storage process.

“We expect it to present a new direction for developing next-generation batteries, fuel cells, and eco-friendly energy catalyst technologies,” Hwang added.

If the approach can be scaled and applied across different catalyst systems, it could help improve the performance of a wide range of clean-energy technologies without requiring entirely new catalyst materials.

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