Atomically dispersed Fe-N-S-C anchored on pomegranate-shaped carbon spheres for oxygen reduction reaction and all-solid-state zinc-air battery. (September 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Jiang, P.; Chen, S.; Wang, C.; Wang, D.; Diao, J.; Cao, Z.; Lin, Z.; Luo, Q.; Lu, J.; Huang, H.; Zong, C.; Hu, L.; Chen, Q.
• Is Part Of: Materials today sustainability. Volume 9(2020)
• Publication Date: 2020-09
• Subjects: Oxygen reduction reaction -- Flexible Zn-air battery -- Single atom -- Fe-N-S-C -- nitrogen-sulfur dual-doped porous carbon -- FeNx; Materials science -- Environmental aspects -- Periodicals; Sustainable engineering -- Periodicals; 620.11
• DOI: 10.1016/j.mtsust.2020.100039
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2589-2347

Abstract

Abstract: Flexible Zn-air battery (ZAB) plays a pivotal role in the eventual realization of wearable/portable electronic devices such as hearing aids and electronic wristwatches owing to its high energy density and stable working voltage. However, the efficiency and long-term durability are still inevitably limited by the sluggish kinetics of oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in air electrode. Herein, we fabricated a planar all-solid-state rechargeable ZAB with excellent scalability by integrating atomically dispersed FeNx anchored on nitrogen-sulfur dual-doped porous carbon spheres and a highly conductive poly (acrylamide-co -acrylic acid) solid polymer alkaline electrolyte. Owing to the introduction of sulfur in carbon substrate, the catalyst exhibits superior ORR performance over 20% commercial Pt/C. Specially, it also displays outstanding all-solid-state ZAB capacity with a maximum power density of 85.5 mW/cm 2, as well as ultralong cycle life for more than 40 h, which outperforms that of most conventional polyvinyl alcohol alkaline gel electrolyte-based flexible quasi-solid-state or all-solid-state ZAB. Density functional theory results reveal that the dopants N and S play a synergetic interplay in modulating the electronic structure of atomically dispersed FeNx species and provide a fast electron transfer path for ORR.