Nitrogen-doped ordered mesoporous carbon: Effect of carbon precursor on oxygen reduction reactions

• Published in: Chinese journal of catalysis Vol. 37; no. 9; pp. 1562 - 1567
• Main Authors: Li, Xiao-hua, Wan, Kai, Liu, Quan-bing, Piao, Jin-hua, Zheng, Yu-ying, Liang, Zhen-xing
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 01.09.2016
• Subjects: Electrocatalysis; Fuel cell; Nitrogen-doped ordered mesoporous carbon; Oxygen reduction reaction; Precursor; Electrocatalysis; Nitrogen-doped ordered mesoporous carbon; Precursor; Oxygen reduction reaction; Fuel cell
• ISSN: 1872-2067; 1872-2067
• DOI: 10.1016/S1872-2067(16)62498-1

Aniline, pyrrole and phenanthroline, which have different nitrogen compositions, are used as carbon precursors to synthesize nitrogen-doped ordered mesoporous carbons (NOMCs) by the nanocasting method. The effect of the precursor on the resultant NOMC is extensively investigated by nitrogen adsorption-desorption measurements, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), cyclic voltammetry and rotating ring-disk electrode measurements. Salient findings are as follows. First, the precursor has a significant influence on the specific surface area and textural properties. The NOMC materials derived from pyrrole (C-PY-900: 765 m2/g) and phenanthroline (C-Phen-900: 746 m2/g) exhibit higher specific surface areas than the aniline analog (C-PA-900: 569 m2/g). Second, the XPS results indicate that the total nitrogen content (ca. 3.1–3.3 at%) is similar for the three carbon sources, except for a slight difference in the nitrogen configuration. Furthermore, the content of the nitrogen-activated carbon atoms is found to closely depend on the precursor, which is the highest for the phenanthroline-derived carbon. Third, the electrochemical results reveal that the electrocatalytic activity follows in the order C-PA-900 < C-PY-900 < C-Phen-900, confirming that the nitrogen-activated carbon atoms are the active sites for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). In summary, the precursor has considerable influence on the composition and textural properties of the NOMC materials, of which the ORR electrocatalytic activity can be enhanced through optimization of the NOMCs. This work investigated carbon precursor influence on resultant nitrogen-doped ordered mesoporous carbon electrocatalysts. Precursors significantly influence both the composition and textural properties. Precursor and experimental pyrolysis design improves electrocatalytic activity for the oxygen reduction reaction.