MOF-Templated Assembly Approach for Fe3C Nanoparticles Encapsulated in Bamboo-Like N-Doped CNTs: Highly Efficient Oxygen Reduction under Acidic and Basic Conditions

5 years ago

MOF-Templated Assembly Approach for Fe3C Nanoparticles Encapsulated in Bamboo-Like N-Doped CNTs: Highly Efficient Oxygen Reduction under Acidic and Basic Conditions

Roland A. Fischer, Christoph Rösler, Justus Masa, Arshad Aijaz, Wolfgang Schuhmann, Hendrik Antoni, Martin Muhler

Developing high-performance non-precious metal catalysts (NPMCs) for the oxygen-reduction reaction (ORR) is of critical importance for sustainable energy conversion. We report a novel NPMC consisting of iron carbide (Fe3C) nanoparticles encapsulated in N-doped bamboo-like carbon nanotubes (b-NCNTs), synthesized by a new metal-organic framework (MOF)-templated assembly approach. The electrocatalyst exhibits excellent ORR activity in 0.1 m KOH (0.89 V at −1 mA cm−2) and in 0.5 m H2SO4 (0.73 V at −1 mA cm−2) with a hydrogen peroxide yield of below 1 % in both electrolytes. Due to encapsulation of the Fe3C nanoparticles inside porous b-NCNTs, the reported NPMC retains its high ORR activity after around 70 hours in both alkaline and acidic media. Kung–Fe Panda: Fe3C nanoparticles encapsulated homogeneously in N-doped bamboo-like carbon nanotubes are fabricated from a pyrrole-loaded MOF using a well-controlled pyrolytic approach. The obtained catalyst shows high activity and stability towards the oxygen reduction reaction in both acidic and basic electrolytes (see figure).

Publisher URL: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/resolve/doi

DOI: 10.1002/chem.201701389