Nanoporous graphitic-C3N4@carbon metal-free electrocatalysts for highly efficient oxygen reduction

Yao Zheng; Yan Jiao; Jun Chen; Jian Liu; Ji Liang; Aijun Du; Weimin Zhang; Zhonghua Zhu; Sean C Smith; Mietek Jaroniec; Gao Qing Max Lu; Shi Zhang Qiao

doi:10.1021/ja209206c

Nanoporous graphitic-C3N4@carbon metal-free electrocatalysts for highly efficient oxygen reduction

J Am Chem Soc. 2011 Dec 21;133(50):20116-9. doi: 10.1021/ja209206c. Epub 2011 Nov 29.

Authors

Yao Zheng¹, Yan Jiao, Jun Chen, Jian Liu, Ji Liang, Aijun Du, Weimin Zhang, Zhonghua Zhu, Sean C Smith, Mietek Jaroniec, Gao Qing Max Lu, Shi Zhang Qiao

Affiliation

¹ ARC Centre of Excellence for Functional Nanomaterials, Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, QLD 4072 Brisbane, Australia.

PMID: 22082332
DOI: 10.1021/ja209206c

Abstract

Based on theoretical prediction, a g-C(3)N(4)@carbon metal-free oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) electrocatalyst was designed and synthesized by uniform incorporation of g-C(3)N(4) into a mesoporous carbon to enhance the electron transfer efficiency of g-C(3)N(4). The resulting g-C(3)N(4)@carbon composite exhibited competitive catalytic activity (11.3 mA cm(-2) kinetic-limiting current density at -0.6 V) and superior methanol tolerance compared to a commercial Pt/C catalyst. Furthermore, it demonstrated significantly higher catalytic efficiency (nearly 100% of four-electron ORR process selectivity) than a Pt/C catalyst. The proposed synthesis route is facile and low-cost, providing a feasible method for the development of highly efficient electrocatalysts.