Fundamental insights into electrode–electrolyte interfaces are crucial for our understanding of electrochemical processes. Standard electrochemical methods, such as cyclic voltammetry, can reveal important information about the systems of interest. Nevertheless, information about structure and morphology of the electrode–electrolyte interface is not that easily accessible. In situ scanning tunnelling microscopy can resolve the electrode as well as the direct interface to the electrolyte in real time during electrochemical measurements. This includes changes of the electrode in the nanometre to micrometre range, for example, during metal deposition or corrosion, as well as the observation of ordered molecular adlayers on the electrode. In this work, we want to highlight the capabilities of such studies to better understand the fundamental processes of electrocatalysis and metal deposition and dissolution, which are essential to electrochemical energy storage systems.
Anode catalysis reduces the cost and remarkably improves the fuel cell performance; however, it is often neglected owing to its fast kinetics. Currently, the majority of hydrogen is obtained by reforming and purifying the hydrocarbons containing impurities such as CO, CO2, and H2S. CO adsorbs more strongly than hydrogen onto the anode catalysts, inhibiting hydrogen oxidation and resulting in performance degradation. Although activity enhancement is essential, impurity tolerance should be preferred over activity for fuel-cell anode catalysts. Various studies have reported improved CO tolerance via lowering the intrinsic CO adsorption energy of the catalyst by tuning the electronic structure or modulating the OH adsorption energy by placing oxophilic materials near the catalysts. Herein, we categorize recent noteworthy studies according to their strategies and present innovative design principles for CO-resistant anode catalysts.