Premium
Ultrahigh‐Loading Zinc Single‐Atom Catalyst for Highly Efficient Oxygen Reduction in Both Acidic and Alkaline Media
Author(s) -
Li Jia,
Chen Siguo,
Yang Na,
Deng Mingming,
Ibraheem Shumaila,
Deng Jianghai,
Li Jing,
Li Li,
Wei Zidong
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
angewandte chemie
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1521-3757
pISSN - 0044-8249
DOI - 10.1002/ange.201902109
Subject(s) - catalysis , annealing (glass) , chemistry , zinc , protonation , inorganic chemistry , oxygen reduction reaction , oxygen , oxygen reduction , platinum , materials science , electrochemistry , metallurgy , organic chemistry , ion , electrode
Atomically dispersed Zn–N–C nanomaterials are promising platinum‐free catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). However, the fabrication of Zn–N–C catalysts with a high Zn loading remains a formidable challenge owing to the high volatility of the Zn precursor during high‐temperature annealing. Herein, we report that an atomically dispersed Zn–N–C catalyst with an ultrahigh Zn loading of 9.33 wt % could be successfully prepared by simply adopting a very low annealing rate of 1° min −1 . The Zn–N–C catalyst exhibited comparable ORR activity to that of Fe–N–C catalysts, and significantly better ORR stability than Fe–N–C catalysts in both acidic and alkaline media. Further experiments and DFT calculations demonstrated that the Zn–N–C catalyst was less susceptible to protonation than the corresponding Fe–N–C catalyst in an acidic medium. DFT calculations revealed that the Zn–N 4 structure is more electrochemically stable than the Fe–N 4 structure during the ORR process.