Active, stable electrocatalysts based on non-precious metals for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) are critical for the development of cost-effective, efficient renewable energy technologies. Here, Fe/Fe3C-embedded nitrogen-doped carbon was fabricated via pyrolysis of iron-porphyrin-encapsulated mesoporous metal-organic frameworks [PCN-333 (Fe), where "PCN" stands for "porous coordination network"] at 700 °C. The various characterization techniques confirmed that Fe- and Fe3C-containing Fe-N-C material (FeP-P333-700) was successfully prepared by pyrolysis of porphyrin-encapsulated PCN-333 (Fe). FeP-P333-700 exhibited superior electrocatalytic performance for the ORR and HER owing to the synergistic effect of Fe/Fe3C and Fe-N-C active sites.
Keywords: Fe−Nx; N-doped carbon; high durability; hydrogen evolution reaction; iron carbide; metal−organic frameworks; oxygen reduction reaction.