English (United Kingdom)

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/featured_content/oa?rat=en

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/highlighted_journal/

Global: Zendy Plus annual

Presents the access of premium content as premium feature

Premium Content

Presents the keyphrase highlighting as premium feature

Keyphrase Highlighting

Presents the summarisation as premium feature

Summarisation

Insights

Presents the pdf analysis as premium feature

PDF Analysis

Presents the zaia usage as premium feature

ZAIA

Global: Zendy Tools annual

Global: Zendy Free Plan

Global: Zendy Tools monthly

Global: Zendy Plus monthly

Iron- and nitrogen-doped carbon (Fe-N-C) materials are leading candidates to replace platinum catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in fuel cells; however, their active site structures remain poorly understood. A leading postulate is that the iron-containing active sites exist primarily in a pyridinic Fe-N 4  ligation environment, yet, molecular model catalysts generally feature pyrrolic coordination. Herein, we report a molecular pyridinic hexaazacyclophane macrocycle, (phen 2 N 2 )Fe, and compare its spectroscopic, electrochemical, and catalytic properties for ORR to a typical Fe-N-C material and prototypical pyrrolic iron macrocycles. N 1s XPS and XAS signatures for (phen 2 N 2 )Fe are remarkably similar to those of Fe-N-C. Electrochemical studies reveal that (phen 2 N 2 )Fe has a relatively high Fe(III/II) potential with a correlated ORR onset potential within 150 mV of Fe-N-C. Unlike the pyrrolic macrocycles, (phen 2 N 2 )Fe displays excellent selectivity for four-electron ORR, comparable to Fe-N-C materials. The aggregate spectroscopic and electrochemical data demonstrate that (phen 2 N 2 )Fe is a more effective model of Fe-N-C active sites relative to the pyrrolic iron macrocycles, thereby establishing a new molecular platform that can aid understanding of this important class of catalytic materials.

A pyridinic Fe-N4 macrocycle models the active sites in Fe/N-doped carbon electrocatalysts