Fe Nanoparticles Encapsulated in N-Doped Porous Carbon for Efficient Oxygen Reduction in Alkaline Media

Authors

Chun-Yan Li, Key Laboratory of General Chemistry of the National Ethnic Affairs Commission, School of Chemistry and Environment, Southwest Minzu University, Sichuan, Chengdu 610041, China
Rui Zhang, Key Laboratory of General Chemistry of the National Ethnic Affairs Commission, School of Chemistry and Environment, Southwest Minzu University, Sichuan, Chengdu 610041, China
Xiao-Jie Ba, Key Laboratory of General Chemistry of the National Ethnic Affairs Commission, School of Chemistry and Environment, Southwest Minzu University, Sichuan, Chengdu 610041, China
Xiao-Le Jiang, Key Laboratory of General Chemistry of the National Ethnic Affairs Commission, School of Chemistry and Environment, Southwest Minzu University, Sichuan, Chengdu 610041, ChinaFollow
Yao-Yue Yang, Key Laboratory of General Chemistry of the National Ethnic Affairs Commission, School of Chemistry and Environment, Southwest Minzu University, Sichuan, Chengdu 610041, ChinaFollow

Corresponding Author

Xiao-Le Jiang (jiangxl@swun.edu.cn);
Yao-Yue Yang(yaoyueyoung@swun.edu.cn)

Abstract

Rational design and synthesis of non-precious-metal catalyst plays an important role in improving the activity and stability for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) but remains a major challenge. In this work, we used a facile approach to synthesize iron nanoparticles encapsulated in nitrogen-doped porous carbon materials (Fe@N-C) from functionalized metal-organic frameworks (MOFs, MET-6). Embedding Fe nanoparticles into the carbon skeleton increases the graphitization degree and the proportion of graphitic N as well as promotes the formation of mesopores in the catalyst. The Fe@N-C-30 catalyst showed the excellent ORR activity in alkaline solutions (E₀ = 0.97 V vs. RHE, E_1/2 = 0.89 V vs. RHE). Moreover, the Fe@N-C-30 catalyst exhibited better methanol resistance and long-term stability when compared to commercial Pt/C. The superior ORR performance could be attributed to the combination of high electrochemical surface area, relative high portion of graphitic-N, unique porous structures and the synergistic effect between the encapsulated Fe particles and the N-doped carbon layer. This work provides a promising method to construct efficient non-precious-metal ORR catalyst through MOFs.

Graphical Abstract

Keywords

Metal-organic frameworks; Porous structures; Fe nanoparticles; Oxygen reduction reaction

DOI Link

https://doi.org/10.13208/j.electrochem.2210241

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Publication Date

2023-05-28

Online Available Date

2022-12-16

Revised Date

2022-12-02

Received Date

2022-10-24

Recommended Citation

Chun-Yan Li, Rui Zhang, Xiao-Jie Ba, Xiao-Le Jiang, Yao-Yue Yang. Fe Nanoparticles Encapsulated in N-Doped Porous Carbon for Efficient Oxygen Reduction in Alkaline Media[J]. Journal of Electrochemistry, 2023 , 29(5): 2210241.
DOI: 10.13208/j.electrochem.2210241
Available at: https://jelectrochem.xmu.edu.cn/journal/vol29/iss5/5