Shedding light on cerium(III/IV), the unsung hero, and mitigating its chemical inertness with Ni

Abstract

The inertness of Ce(iii/iv), a lanthanide with localized electrons, hampers its practical application in energy storage. Considering the inertness of Ce, it is necessary to identify the fatal bottlenecks and carry out challenging transformations that can influence electrochemical performance. The fabrication of a heterostructure by combining a transition metal (Ni) and a lanthanide (Ce) via a bottom-up approach can mitigate the inertness of the latter. Herein, we outline a distinct electronic modulation strategy to enhance the internal electronic interaction between Ce and Ni via Ni 3d-O 2p-Ce 4f orbital coupling, and the resulting electron delocalization is accompanied by migrant oxygen vacancies. The interfacial restructuring of the Ni- and Ce-based heterostructure outperformed its Ce-based counterpart, with enhanced electrochemical performance. The deep insight drawn from this paradigm shift unfolds a wide scope in employing transition metals to enhance the lanthanides with expanded functionalities for impressive advancements in energy technologies.