Structured electrolytes facilitate Grotthuss-type transport for enhanced proton-coupled electron transfer reactions.

ABSTRACT: Concentrated hydrogen-bonded electrolytes (CoHBEs) are structured, electrochemically stable, less-volatile alternatives to aqueous and dilute nonaqueous electrolytes, however, with high viscosities that limit molecular diffusion. This work provides an understanding of the proton conduction mechanism in CoHBEs based on mixtures of acids and azoles and establishes a link between the structurally dictated transport properties and the proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) reaction rates that can be leveraged for enhancing electrochemical reactions. Diffusion and relaxation NMR studies suggest a breaking of the viscosity-conductivity tradeoff, where at high azole concentrations (>45 mol%), Grotthuss transport is more likely with lowered proton transfer energy barriers between the azole and th

SUBMITTER: Munoz M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12773760 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature