Atomically Dispersed Co-Anchored N Rich Graphitic Carbon Network: A Highly Efficient Oxygen Reduction Electro Catalyst

Wednesday, 12 October 2022: 10:40
Galleria 7 (The Hilton Atlanta)
N. Jha, R. S. Mane (Institute of chemical technology (ICT Mumbai)), and V. Somkuwar (Institute of chemical technology)
Rational design of non-precious and highly efficient electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is of great importance for sustainable energy exploitation to solve the energy crisis and environmental jeopardy. In this regard herein, we report work function tailored zeolite derived hierarchically porous and active site enrich electrocatalyst for ORR in acidic and alkaline medium. The electrochemical analysis proposes that the optimized electrocatalyst for surface area, porosity and active center density facilitate the electronic transfer from atomic Co to Nitrogen doped carbon framework and, further to antibonding oxygen state. The optimized catalyst shows the high ORR activity, remarkable onset potential (E onset acid- 0.89 V, E onset alkaline – 0.951 V) and large number of active site density (ASD acid -7.84×1023 /g, ASD acid - 1.51×1024 /g) with excellent stability and durability. It is proposed that the high performance of the catalyst is attributed to the reduction in work function (ф ZIF 67- 5.2 to ф optimized- 4.6) as an effect of temperature followed by post ‘acid leaching’ (AL) treatment to alter the surface area of the catalyst. Here, we represent a favorable strategy for highly efficient and durable ORR catalyst. This hybrid structure provides a new perspective to catalyst architectures.