One–step Synthesis of MnO/Ni Nanoparticles Anchored on Porous Nitrogen–doped Carbons from Melamine Foam and Electrocatalytic Study towards Oxygen Reduction Reaction

• Published in: ChemistrySelect (Weinheim) 2017-05, Vol.2 (15), p.4234-4240
• Main Authors: Li, Haibo, Ren, Cancan, Zhang, Rui, Li, Rui, Xu, Shuling, Wang, Lei, Qu, Konggang, Kang, Wenjun, Wang, Huaisheng, Yang, Shiliu, Yu, Yang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: hybrid catalyst; melamine foam pyrolysis; MnO/Ni nanoparticles; oxygen reduction reaction; synergetic effect
• ISSN: 2365-6549; 2365-6549
• DOI: 10.1002/slct.201700286

The exploration of non‐noble metal catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is of great significance in energy conversion devices, such as fuel cells and metal‐air batteries. In this work, a hybrid catalyst composed of MnO/Ni nanoparticles anchored on porous branched nitrogen‐doped carbons (MnO/Ni@BNCs) were prepared by direct pyrolyzing melamine foams containing Mn(II) and Ni (II) ions at 800 °C under N2 atmosphere. On the basis of electrochemical tests, it was found that the MnO/Ni@BNCs hybrid catalyst showed a high efficient four‐electron catalytic pathway towards ORR and gave a low yield of H2O2 (< 7.53 %). It also exhibited a good catalytic stability and methanol tolerance, exceeding the commercial Pt/C catalyst. The excellent catalytic performance was attributed to the synergetic effect between high catalytic activity of MnO and high electrical conductivity of Ni. Furthermore, the high surface area and porous structure characters of carbon support, which partially inherited the microstructure of melamine foam, also benefited the electron transfer and reactive species transformation during ORR process. A hybrid catalyst composed of MnO/Ni nanoparticles anchored on porous branched nitrogen‐doped carbons (MnO/Ni@BNCs) show a high efficient four‐electron catalytic pathway and a good catalytic stability and methanol tolerance towards ORR.