A novel Fe/N/C electrocatalyst prepared from a carbon-supported iron(ii) complex of macrocyclic ligands for oxygen reduction reaction. Issue 15 (24th February 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Xu, Dawei; Fu, Yuanyuan; Xiao, Dejian; Li, Xuhui; Wang, Yefei; Li, Kai; Li, Zhongfeng; Zheng, Lirong; Zuo, Xia
• Is Part Of: RSC advances. Volume 11:Issue 15(2021)
• Page Start: 8437
• Page End: 8443
• Publication Date: 2021-02-24
• Subjects: Chemistry -- Periodicals; 540.5
• DOI: 10.1039/d0ra09730f
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2046-2069

Abstract

Abstract : We synthesized Fe/N/C composites from a carbon-supported iron(ii ) coordination complex of 2, 3-dicyanotetraazabenzotriphenylene (2, 3-DCTBT) ligands via hydrothermal treatment. Abstract : Herein, we report a novel method to synthesize Fe/N/C composites from a carbon-supported iron (ii ) coordination complex of 2, 3-dicyanotetraazabenzotriphenylene (2, 3-DCTBT) ligands towards oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in alkaline media. We investigated the influence of different temperatures during the thermal carbonization process on the performance of the catalyst, and Fe/N/C-900 stood out among all other samples because of the existence of Fe–N x active sites. The as-obtained Fe/N/C-900 exhibited excellent electrochemical performance ( E onset is 0.98 V vs. RHE in 0.1 M KOH) for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) compared with the commercial 20% Pt/C. Moreover, this catalyst possessed good stability and high tolerance to methanol, and followed the four-electron mechanism ( n = 3.97). Remarkably, the use of 2, 3-DCTBT for the first time as a precursor has opened new avenues to prepare electrocatalysts for ORR.