Strong coupling Fe2VO4 nanoparticles/3D N-doped interconnected porous carbon derived from MOFs by confined adsorption-assembly-pyrolysis for greatly boosting oxygen reduction

• Published in: Journal of colloid and interface science Vol. 684; no. Pt 2; pp. 10 - 20
• Main Authors: Liu, Ling-Ling, Liu, Lu, Wang, Chen-Yang, Zhang, Lu, Feng, Jiu-Ju, Gao, Yi-Jing, Wang, Ai-Jun
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Inc 15.04.2025
• Subjects: batteries; carbon; catalysts; catalytic activity; Confined adsorption; crosslinking; density functional theory; electrochemistry; energy; iron; nanoparticles; oxygen; Oxygen reduction reaction; Pyrolysis; Transition metal oxides; vanadium; Zinc-air batteries; Pyrolysis; Transition metal oxides; Zinc-air batteries; Confined adsorption; Oxygen reduction reaction
• ISSN: 0021-9797; 1095-7103; 1095-7103
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2025.01.052

[Display omitted] Low-cost and effective electrocatalysts are critical for energy storage and conversion. Herein, iron(III) and vanadium(III) acetylacetonates were first adsorbed and confined in porous zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8), which further cross-linked together by the methanol-induced-assembly. Following the pyrolysis, the Fe2VO4 nanoparticles were efficiently encapsulated within three-dimensional (3D) N-doped interconnected porous carbon, termed Fe2VO4/NIPC. The obtained Fe2VO4/NIPC displayed outstanding catalytic properties in the alkaline media for oxygen reduction reaction with a half-wave potential of 0.86 V. In the parallel, density functional theory (DFT) calculations were performed to illustrate the catalytic mechanism. Moreover, the Fe2VO4/NIPC assembled Zn-air battery showed a high peak power density of 107.7 mW cm−2 and excellent long-cycle stability over a duration of 250 h, which outperformed commercial Pt/C catalyst in the control group. The strong coupling and synergistic effects between the Fe2VO4 nanoparticles and N-doped carbon improved the catalytic performance, coupled by promoting the stability. This study opens a prospect way to develop high-efficiency carbon-based electrocatalysts in energy storage and conversion devices.