Article Title

Active catalysts based on cobalt oxide@cobalt/N-C nanocomposites for oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline solutions

Authors

Dekang Huang, Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, School of Optical and Electronic Information, Huazhong University of Science and Technology,1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, China
Yanping Luo, Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, School of Optical and Electronic Information, Huazhong University of Science and Technology,1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, China
Shaohui Li, Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, School of Optical and Electronic Information, Huazhong University of Science and Technology,1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, China
Bingyan Zhang, Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, School of Optical and Electronic Information, Huazhong University of Science and Technology,1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, China
Yan Shen, Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, School of Optical and Electronic Information, Huazhong University of Science and Technology,1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, China
Mingkui Wang, Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, School of Optical and Electronic Information, Huazhong University of Science and Technology,1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, China

Keywords

oxygen reduction reaction, electrocatalysis, CoO, Co/N–C

Abstract

Over the past few years, electrocatalysis for the oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline solutions has undergone tremendous advances, and non-precious metal catalysts are of prime interest. In this study, we present a highly promising CoO@Co/N–C (where N–C represents a N-doped carbon material) catalyst, achieving an onset potential of 0.99 V (versus the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE)) and a limiting current density of 7.07 mA·cm–2 (at 0.3 V versus RHE) at a rotation rate of 2,500 rpm in an O2-saturated 0.1 M KOH solution, comparable to a commercial Pt/C catalyst. The H2–O2 alkaline fuel cell test of CoO@Co/N–C as the cathode reveals a maximum power density of 237 mW·cm–2. Detailed investigation clarifies that a synergistic effect, induced by C–N, Co–N–C, and CoO/Co moieties, is responsible for the bulk of the gain in catalytic activity

Graphical Abstract

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-014-0468-1

Publisher

Tsinghua University Press

Recommended Citation

Dekang Huang,Yanping Luo,Shaohui Li,Bingyan Zhang,Yan Shen,Mingkui Wang, Active catalysts based on cobalt oxide@cobalt/N-C nanocomposites for oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline solutions. NanoRes.2014, 7(7): 1054–1064