Ferricyanide Armed Anodes Enable Stable Water Oxidation in Saturated Saline Water at 2 A/cm(2)

The direct seawater electrolysis at high current density and low overpotential affords an effective strategy toward clean and renewable hydrogen fuel production. However, the severe corrosion of anode as a result of the saturation of Cl- upon continuous seawater feeding seriously hamper the electrolytic process. Herein, cobalt ferricyanide / cobalt phosphide (CoFePBA/Co2P) anodes with Cap/Pin structure are synthesized, which stably catalyze alkaline saturated saline water oxidation at 200-2000 mA cm(-2) over hundreds of hours without corrosion. Together with the experimental findings, the molecular dynamics simulations reveal that PO(4)(3- )and Fe(CN)(6)(3-) generated by the electrode play synergistic role in repelling Cl- via electrostatic repulsion and dense coverage, which reduced Cl- adsorption by nearly 5-fold. The novel anionic synergy endow superior corrosion protection for the electrode, and is expected to promote the practical application of saline water electrolysis.