Recently, Dr. Yao Na, Dr. Xiong Xiaoman, and Professor Chen Fengxiang from the research team of Academician Xu Weilin at the National Key Laboratory of Textile New Materials and Advanced Processing Technology published a research article entitled "Strategic Modulation of *OH Characteristics via Metal-Support Interactions and Charge Gradient in RuMo@RuMoOx for Enhanced Water Oxidation" in Advanced Functional Materials. This study presents a strategic approach to regulate the behavior of hydroxyl intermediates (*OH) on Ru-based catalysts by tailoring their adsorption characteristics, thereby modulating the catalytic pathway and enhancing oxygen evolution reaction (OER) performance. The authors developed a RuMo@RuMoOx electrocatalyst engineered with strong metal-support interactions and an intrinsic charge gradient, which effectively promotes *OH adsorption at Ru sites, optimizes the orientation of adsorbed *OH, and facilitates its spillover to adjacent Mo sites. Combined quasi-in situ/in situ characterizations and theoretical calculations reveal that this design initiates a hydroxyl migration coupling mechanism (HMCM), disrupts the conventional *OH–*OOH scaling relationship, alters the rate-determining step (RDS), and stabilizes key OER intermediates, leading to significantly improved catalytic efficiency. The RuMo@RuMoOx catalyst achieves low overpotentials of 166 mV, 200 mV, and 199 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm⁻² in 0.5 M H₂SO₄, 1 M KOH, and 1 M PBS, respectively, while maintaining exceptional stability for over 1,000 hours. Notably, the catalyst outperforms benchmark RuO₂ in terms of overpotential and demonstrates long-term durability under harsh operating conditions, sustaining stable performance for more than 1,000 hours at a high current density of 1 A cm⁻² in a proton exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolyzer. This work offers a novel and effective strategy for the rational design of high-performance metal oxide electrocatalysts for water oxidation.

The findings were published in Advanced Functional Materials under the aforementioned title, with Professors Yao Na, Xiong Xiaoman, and Chen Fengxiang serving as corresponding authors and Cai Ao, a master’s student supervised by Dr. Yao Na, as the first author. Paper link: https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202515506.

Dr. Yao Na joined the research team led by Academician Xu Weilin at the National Key Laboratory of Textile New Materials and Advanced Processing Technology in July 2022. Her research focuses on the controllable synthesis and mechanistic investigation of flexible electrode materials integrated with highly efficient catalytic species. To date, she has authored or co-authored over 30 SCI-indexed publications as first or corresponding author in prestigious international journals, including Nature Communications, Chem, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, Advanced Energy Materials, Advanced Functional Materials, Chemical Science, Advanced Science, and ACS Catalysis.