The great challenge of boosting the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity of non-noble-metal electrocatalysts is how to achieve effective exposure and full utilization of nitrogen-rich active sites. To realize the goals of high utilization of active sites and fast electron transport, here we report a new strategy for synthesis of an iron and nitrogen co-doped carbon nanolayers-wrapped multi-...

The design of a non-precious metal oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalyst of high activity and long durability in acidic electrolyte is of great importance for the development and commercialization of low-temperature fuel cells, which remains a great challenge to date. Here, we demonstrate a facile, scalable protocol for the controlled synthesis of CoxC encapsulated in carbon nanotubes as a n...

Carbon-based metal-free electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in alkaline medium have been extensively investigated with the aim of replacing the commercially available, but precious platinum-based catalysts. For the proper design of carbon-based metal-free electrocatalysts for the ORR, it would be interesting to identify the active sites of the electrocatalyst. The ORR was n...

Nitrogen (N)-doped carbon and its non-noble metal composite replacing platinum-based oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) electrocatalysts still have some fundamental problems that remain. Here the micron-sized commercial polyacrylonitrile-based carbon fiber (PAN-CF) electrode was modified using an electrochemical method, converting its inherent pyridinic-N into 2-pyridone (or 2-hydroxyl pyridine) f...

Although nitrogen doped CNTs (N-CNTs) are considered as a promising alternative to platinized carbon for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs), the origin of the enhanced ORR activity with N-CNTs is not clear at present. Among several plausible reasons, the exposure of edge plane and creation of impurity band/surface states near the Fermi level ...

Polarization caused by the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) on cathodes still contributes significantly to the energy efficiency loss of metal–air batteries and fuel cells. Thus, ways of increasing the ORR kinetics while maintaining fast mass transfer is a grand challenge in the development of a new generation of metal–air batteries and fuel cells. Catalysts based on platinum and other precious ...

-Localization of Pt electrocatalyst by sputter deposition of a thin film (5OOA) on the front surface of a fuel cell electrode containing a supported electrocatalyst (20% Pt/C, 0.4mgcm-* loading) has been known to exhibit higher fuel cell performance as compared to that on the electrode without the sputtered flm. This study compares the electrode kinetic parameters, electrochemically active surf...

The conducting polymer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) has shown promise as air electrode in renewable energy technologies like metal-air batteries and fuel cells. PEDOT is based on atomic elements of high abundance and is synthesized at low temperature from solution. The mechanism of oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) over chemically polymerized PEDOT:Cl still remains controversial with ...

Bimetallic Pd–Co and pure Pt electrocatalysts were evaluated for tolerance to methanol in the oxygen reduction reaction ORR in 0.5 M H2SO4 using the tip generation–substrate collection mode of scanning electrochemical microscopy. The Pd–Co electrocatalyst, Pd80Co20 80% Pd, 20% Co , showed the highest ORR activity among the different Pd–Co compositions, both in the absence and presence of MeOH. ...