1 research outputs found

    Hydrothermal Synthesis of Highly Dispersed Co<sub>3</sub>O<sub>4</sub> Nanoparticles on Biomass-Derived Nitrogen-Doped Hierarchically Porous Carbon Networks as an Efficient Bifunctional Electrocatalyst for Oxygen Reduction and Evolution Reactions

    No full text
    Developing high-performance bifunctional electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is of vital importance in energy storage and conversion systems. Herein, we demonstrate a facile hydrothermal synthesis of highly dispersed Co<sub>3</sub>O<sub>4</sub> nanoparticles (NPs) anchored on cattle-bone-derived nitrogen-doped hierarchically porous carbon (NHPC) networks as an efficient ORR/OER bifunctional electrocatalyst. The as-prepared Co<sub>3</sub>O<sub>4</sub>/NHPC exhibits a remarkable catalytic activity toward both ORR (outperforming the commercial Pt/C) and OER (comparable with the commercial RuO<sub>2</sub> catalyst) in alkaline electrolyte. The superior bifunctional catalytic activity can be ascribed to the large specific surface area (1070 m<sup>2</sup> g<sup>–1</sup>), the well-defined hierarchically porous structure, and the high content of nitrogen doping (4.93 wt %), which synergistically contribute to the homogeneous dispersion of Co<sub>3</sub>O<sub>4</sub> NPs and the enhanced mass transport capability. Moreover, the primary Zn–air battery using the Co<sub>3</sub>O<sub>4</sub>/NHPC cathode demonstrates a superior performance with an open-circuit potential of 1.39 V, a specific capacity of 795 mA h g<sub>Zn</sub><sup>–1</sup> (at 2 mA cm<sup>–2</sup>), and a peak power density of 80 mW cm<sup>–2</sup>. This work delivers a new insight into the design and synthesis of high-performance bifunctional nonprecious metal electrocatalysts for Zn–air battery and other electrochemical devices
    corecore