Atomically Dispersed Fe/N-Doped Hierarchical Carbon Architectures Derived from a Metal–Organic Framework Composite for Extremely Efficient Electrocatalysis

• Published in: ACS energy letters 2017-02, Vol.2 (2), p.504-511
• Main Authors: Zhu, Qi-Long, Xia, Wei, Zheng, Li-Rong, Zou, Ruqiang, Liu, Zheng, Xu, Qiang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 2380-8195; 2380-8195
• DOI: 10.1021/acsenergylett.6b00686

Hierarchical graphitic porous carbon architectures with atomically dispersed Fe and N doping have been fabricated from a metal–organic framework (MOF) composite by using a facile strategy, which show high specific surface areas, hierarchical pore structures with macro/meso/micro multimodal pore size distributions, abundant surface functionality with single-atom dispersed N and Fe doping, and improved hydrophilicity. Detailed analyses unambiguously disclosed the main active sites of doped N atoms and FeN x species in the catalyst. The resultant catalyst affords high catalytic performance for oxygen reduction, outperforming the benchmark Pt catalyst and many state-of-the-art noble-metal-free catalysts in alkaline media, particularly in terms of the onset and half-wave potentials and durability. Such catalytic performance demonstrates the significant advantages of the unique hierarchical porous structure with efficient atomic doping, which provides a high density of accessible active sites for much improved mass and charge transports.