Ultralong Distance Hydrogen Spillover Enabled by Valence Changes in a Metal Oxide Surface

Hydrogen spillover is a phenomenon in which hydrogen atoms generated on metal catalysts diffuse onto catalyst supports. This phenomenon offers reaction routes for functional materials. However, due to difficulties in visualizing hydrogen, the fundamental nature of the phenomenon, such as how far hydrogen diffuses, has not been well understood. Here, in this study, we fabricated catalytic model systems based on Pd-loaded SrFeO_x (x ∼ 2.8) epitaxial films and investigated hydrogen spillover. We show that hydrogen spillover on the SrFeO_x support extends over long distances (∼600 μm). Furthermore, the hydrogen-spillover-induced reduction of Fe⁴⁺ in the support yields large energies (as large as 200 kJ/mol), leading to the spontaneous hydrogen transfer and driving the surprisingly ultralong hydrogen diffusion. These results show that the valence changes in the supports' surfaces are the primary factor determining the hydrogen spillover distance. Our study leads to a deeper understanding of the long-debated issue of hydrogen spillover and provides insight into designing catalyst systems with enhanced properties.