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Inducing strain in the lattice effectively enhances the intrinsic activity of electrocatalysts by shifting the metal's d-band center and tuning the binding energy of reaction intermediates. NiFe-layered double hydroxides (NiFe LDHs) are promising electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) due to their cost-effectiveness and high catalytic activity. The distorted β-NiOOH phase produced by the Jahn-Teller effect under the oxidation polarization is known to exhibit superior catalytic activity, but it eventually transforms to the undistorted γ-NiOOH phase during the OER process. Such a reversible lattice distortion limits the OER activity. In this study, we propose a facile boron tungstate (BWO) anion intercalation method to induce irreversible lattice distortion in NiFe LDHs, leading to significantly enhanced OER activity. Strong interactions with BWO anions induce significant stress on the LDH's metal-hydroxide slab, leading to an expansion of metal-oxygen bonds and subsequent lattice distortion.
Cho et al. (Mon,) studied this question.