Synergy of Ru and Ir in the Electrohydrogenation of Toluene to Methylcyclohexane on a Ketjenblack-Supported Ru-Ir Alloy Cathode

An organic hydride system based on hydrogenation/dehydrogenation of toluene (TL)/methylcyclohexane (MCH) has been studied as a hydrogen storage technology. Electrohydrogenation of TL to MCH using a proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer is proposed as a candidate for the hydrogenation of TL in the organic hydride system. Recently, we reported that a Ketjenblack-supported Ru-Ir alloy (Ru-Ir/KB) cathode was effective for the reaction; however, electrohydrogenation mechanisms and catalyses of Ru and Ir in the electrohydrogenation have been unclear. In this paper, detailed characterization studies using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and electrochemical studies using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) for hydrogen evolution and kinetic studies for catalytic hydrogenation of TL by Ru-Ir/KB catalysts were conducted. On the basis of the experimental results, the electrohydrogenation mechanisms and synergy of Ru and Ir were proposed.