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

Authors

Chun-Yan Li, 1. 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, 1. 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, 1. 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, 1. Key Laboratory of General Chemistry of the National Ethnic Affairs Commission, School of Chemistry and Environment, Southwest Minzu University, Sichuan, Chengdu 610041, China;
Yao-Yue Yang, 1. Key Laboratory of General Chemistry of the National Ethnic Affairs Commission, School of Chemistry and Environment, Southwest Minzu University, Sichuan, Chengdu 610041, China;Follow

Document Type

Article

Corresponding Author(s)

Xiao-Le Jiang;
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 use a facile approach to synthesize Fe nanoparticles encapsulated in N-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 shows 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 exhibits 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

10.13208/j.electrochem.2210241

Online Date

12-16-2022

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, doi: 10.13208/j.electrochem.2210241.