Sung-Fu Hung Group

Congratulate Kang-Shun, Yu-Jhih Shen, and  on completing 30 hours​ VLSI training courses - Advanced Processing for VLSI Technology and passing the examinations. We hope that they have learned knowledge regarding Semiconductor process, and utilize what they learned to their researches.

Prof. Hung published "Operando XAS and Raman Perspectives on Catalyst Design" as the corresponding author in Chemistry Asia Journal. 

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The following is the publication information:

Peng, K.-S.; Shen, Y.-J.; Liu, Y.-C.; Chou, C.-H.; Chang, Y.-C.; Li, M.-H.; Hsu, S.-H.; Hung, S.-F.* Operando XAS and Raman Perspectives on Catalyst Design. Chem. Asia J. 2026, 21, e00900.

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https://aces.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/asia.202500900

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Abstract:

Driven by accelerating global warming and the imperative of carbon neutrality, the search for efficient electrochemical energy-conversion technologies has intensified. Recent advances in electrocatalysis have introduced strategies to overcome kinetic, selectivity, and stability constraints in the carbon dioxide reduction reaction, oxygen reduction reaction, and water splitting. These developments range from atomic-scale structural modulation to microenvironment engineering, yielding substantial gains in product selectivity, reduced overpotential, and enhanced operational durability. This review consolidates representative breakthroughs across these three reaction domains and emphasizing design principles that couple performance optimization with mechanistic insight through operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and Raman spectroscopy. XAS resolves chemical states and local coordination environments, while Raman tracks surface-bound intermediates; together, they enable a comprehensive elucidation of catalytic mechanisms. The review also outlines key directions for advancing efficient, robust, and scalable electrochemical energy-conversion systems.

At the end of the year of Horse, we went to a Chamonix Teppanyaki Restaurant.  The advisor prepared a capsule-toy game. Each student strived their own Year-end-bonuses by capsule the number for the red envelope and the luck for the year of Horse. Happy Lunar New Year!!!

Prof. Hung published "Plasma-engineered ultra-low RuPt alloy loading on N-doped carbon nanotubes for efficient methanol oxidation in direct methanol fuel cells" as the corresponding author in Chemical Engineering Journal. 

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The following is the publication information:

Qin, C.; Wang, W.; Zhang, Q.; Wang, Y.; Jiang, Z.-J.;* Hung, S.-F.;* Jiang, Z.* Plasma-engineered ultra-low RuPt alloy loading on N-doped carbon nanotubes for efficient methanol oxidation in direct methanol fuel cells. Chem. Eng. J. 2026, 532, 174611.

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https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S138589472602070X

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Abstract:

Developing efficient and low-cost catalysts with minimal noble metal usage remains a key challenge for direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). Herein, we present a plasma-assisted dual-strategy that integrates direct-current plasma magnetron sputtering (DC-PMS) and radio-frequency (RF) plasma treatment to fabricate RuPt alloy nanoparticles on CoFe-embedded nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes supported on carbon fiber cloth (p-RuPt-CoFe@NCNT/CFC). With only 0.11 wt% Ru and 0.73 wt% Pt, the catalyst achieves ultra-low platinum group metal (PGM) loading while maintaining abundant structural defects, including carbon vacancies and nitrogen dopants. These plasma-induced modifications increase the density of active sites, promote the generation of Pt0 and Ru0 species, and strengthen metal–support interactions, thereby enhancing catalytic stability and CO tolerance. With a PGM loading of only 0.35 mg cm−2, the p-RuPt-CoFe@NCNT/CFC catalyst delivers a mass activity of 402.6 mA mg−1PGM, demonstrating competitive performance compared with recently reported low-loading PtRu catalysts. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations show that carbon defects and nitrogen dopants in NCNTs strongly promote RuPt nucleation and growth, enhance binding affinity at the metal–support interface, shift the Pt d-band center away from the Fermi level, and reduce CO adsorption energy—collectively accounting for the enhanced CO tolerance and high methanol oxidation reaction activity.

Prof. Hung published "Cr and Nd co-doped cobalt oxide for stable proton exchange membrane water electrolysis" as the cofirst author in Nature Communications. 

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The following is the publication information:

Gao, T.;† Li, F.;† Hung, S.-F.;† Yang, H.; Sun, Y.; Peng, K.-S.; Sha, Q.; Mao, Q.; Tao, H.;* Chen, P.;* Liu, B.* Cr and Nd co-doped cobalt oxide for stable proton exchange membrane water electrolysis. Nature Commun. 2026, accepted.

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Abstract:

Developing noble-metal-free electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution reaction in a proton exchange membrane water electrolyzer is a key to sustainable and economical hydrogen production. Herein, we rationally design and develop a chromium and neodymium co-doped cobalt oxide (CrNd-Co3O4) electrocatalyst that exhibits high activity and durability in the acidic oxygen evolution reaction condition. Furthermore, an in-situ acid circulation strategy is proposed to tackle the ubiquitous issue of membrane poisoning by leached cations in proton exchange membrane water electrolyzers. Consequently, the proton exchange membrane water electrolyzer with CrNd-Co3O4 anode achieves a stable operating current density of 2 amperes per square centimeter at 2.27 volts and 4 amperes per square centimeter at 2.54 volts for 1,000 hours.

We congratulate Kang-Shun on winning Best Presentation Award at HERCULES 2026.

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Prof. Hung published "Hydrophobic Surface Modification Enables Tandem Ag/Cu Catalysis for CO₂ Electroreduction" as the corresponding author in ACS Applied Materials & Interface. 

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The following is the publication information:

Liu, Y.-C.; Peng, K.-S.; Shen, Y.-J.; Hsu, S.-H.; Chou, C.-H.; Chang, Y.-C.; Li, M.-H.; Lu, Y.-R.; Hung, S.-F.* Hydrophobic Surface Modification Enables Tandem Ag/Cu Catalysis for CO₂ Electroreduction. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2026, 18, 24306-24316.

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Abstract:

Ag–Cu tandem catalysts are a promising route to boost C2+ formation during CO2 electroreduction; however, well-defined layered Ag/Cu catalysts fabricated by PVD/sputtering without an ionomer behave like pure Cu in flow cells, showing no tandem enhancement. Contact-angle measurements indicate that the exposed Ag surface lowers overall hydrophobicity, restricting CO2 transport to Ag and suppressing tandem pathways. To address this limitation, in this study, we adopt a hydrophobic surface modification using 1-dodecanethiol (DDT). The resulting DDT–Ag/Cu achieves 74.09 ± 1.69% Faradaic efficiency toward C2+ products with a partial current density of 370.5 ± 8.45 mA cm–2 at 500 mA cm–2, outperforming benchmark Cu and unmodified Ag/Cu under optimized conditions (by ∼65%). DDT–Ag/Cu also enhances ethanol selectivity, increasing the ethanol-to-ethylene ratio from ∼0.5 to ∼1.0. In situ Raman spectroscopy reveals distinct intermediates under hydrophobic conditions. These results clarify the intrinsic behavior of Ag–Cu tandem catalysis and offer a practical strategy to boost tandem performance in flow-cell CO2 electroreduction.

Prof. Hung published "Interactions between Graphene Nanosheets and Copper Oxide Promote C2 Formation in Rapid CO2 Electroreduction" as the corresponding author in ACS Applied Nano Materials. 

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The following is the publication information:

Peng, K.-S.; Liu, Y.-C.; Shen, Y.-J.; Kang, C.; Lin, S.-P.; Chang, Y.-C.; Haw, S.-C.; Chan, T.-S.;* Lu, Y.-R.;* Hsu, S.-H.; Hung, S.-F.* Interactions between Graphene Nanosheets and Copper Oxide Promote C2 Formation in Rapid CO2 Electroreduction. ACS Appl. Nano Mater. 2026, 9, 9343-9355.

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Abstract:

Copper-based catalysts can electrochemically reduce carbon dioxide into valuable multicarbon products, offering a promising solution to mitigate atmospheric CO2 levels. However, their practical application is hindered by limited product selectivity and an insufficient C2 current density at high operating currents. To overcome these limitations, in this study, we develop graphene-supported copper oxide electrocatalysts aimed at enhancing the catalytic performance of the CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) to C2 products. This enhancement is attributed to strong electronic interactions between the copper d-orbitals and carbon species, together with improved electrical conductivity, as evidenced by soft X-ray absorption spectroscopy and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The resulting electrocatalyst achieves a Faradaic efficiency of 70.45% for C2 products at 400 mA/cm2, with a partial current density of 281.8 mA/cm2. This performance markedly surpasses that of the benchmark copper electrocatalyst, which exhibits a comparable Faradaic efficiency of 70.27% only at 200 mA/cm2, with a partial current density of 140.54 mA/cm2. Operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy reveals that CuO is rapidly reduced to a metallic state under reaction conditions, resembling the metallic copper benchmark; however, the interfacial interaction between copper and carbon enriches crucial reaction intermediates during the CO2RR, as evidenced by Operando Raman spectroscopy, in good agreement with the observed electrochemical product distribution. These findings provide valuable insights for the design of CO2RR electrocatalysts and contribute to the advancement of Net Zero emissions.

Prof. Hung published "Flow-Cell-Compatible Operando Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy for Probing Reaction Intermediates during Carbon Dioxide Reduction Reaction" as the corresponding author in Nature Communications. 

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The following is the publication information:

Shen, Y.-J.; Hsu, Y.-H.; Chang, Y.-C.; Liu, Y.-C.; Peng, K.-S.; Hu, C.-W.; Lu, Y.-R.; Hsu, S.-H.; Flow-Cell-Compatible Operando Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy for Probing Reaction Intermediates during Carbon Dioxide Reduction Reaction. J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 2026, accepted.

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Abstract:

Elucidating reaction intermediates under practically relevant conditions remains a fundamental challenge in electrocatalysis. For an electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR), reaction mechanisms can differ substantially between conventional H-cells and high-rate flow cells, complicating accurate operando characterization. In this study, we develop a flow-cell-compatible operando surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy platform by integrating silica-coated Au nanorods (AuNRs@SiO2) optimized for 785 nm excitation. The plasmonic resonance enhances Raman signals while suppressing fluorescence, and the inert SiO2 shell prevents catalytic perturbation, enabling sensitive measurements under practical catalytic conditions. Using a benchmark copper catalyst, we directly detect key transient intermediates, including *CO2– and *HOCCOH, that are inaccessible by conventional Raman spectroscopy. Deconvolution of the adsorbed *CO reveals bridge-bonded, low-frequency, and high-frequency components, establishing a quantitative correlation between *CO speciation and C2 selectivity. Parallel flow-cell and H-cell comparisons highlight the necessity of realistic mass transport. This work establishes a general operando spectroscopic strategy for mechanistic studies under realistic CO2RR conditions.

We congratulate Kang-Shun on winning Silver Award at SNDCT 2026.

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We congratulate Kang-Shun's paper on highlighting as Front Cover at ACS Applied Nano Materials.

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