Ruthenia (RuO2) is a transition metal oxide characterized by d-band metallic conductivity and is a prototypical electrode for reactions that evolve gases such as chlorine, oxygen, and hydrogen. Crystalline ruthenia can be synthesized by a battery of strategies such as chemical vapor deposition, reactive sputtering, a templated route, or via evaporative self-assembly. This last technique is a rapid solution-based protocol that is inexpensive as well as versatile and is utilized for coating carbon fiber with RuO2 nanorods for catalytic applications. Evaporative self-assembly is typically a means to an end for producing devices based on nanostructured ruthenia and therefore, the majority of studies thus far lack fundamental information about the crystallization mechanism of this oxide. Here we demonstrate that evaporative self-assembly of RuO2 nanorods from an aqueous solution of RuCl3 is a surface induced process controlled by solution/substrate interactions. We manipulate the surface energy of carbon fibers to induce crystallization and deposition of a homogenous high packing nanofibrillar density. This work elucidates a fundamental mechanism that leads to the self-assembly and formation of crystalline ruthenia nanorods.

Control of nanorod formation in ruthenia via substrate induced evaporative self-assembly

248th National Meeting (2014)

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