B,N-codoped 3D micro-/mesoporous carbon nanofibers web as efficient metal-free catalysts for oxygen reduction |
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Affiliation: | 1. Science and Technology on Advanced Ceramic Fiber and Composites Laboratory, National University of Defense Technology, Changsha, 410073, PR China;2. College of Basic Education, National University of Defense Technology, Changsha, 410073, PR China;3. Key Laboratory of High Performance Fiber & Products, Ministry of Education, Donghua University, Shanghai, 201620, PR China;4. State Key Laboratory of Low-Dimensional Quantum Physics, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, PR China;5. College of Materials Science & Engineering, State Key Laboratory for New Textile Materials & Advanced Processing Technology, Wuhan Textile University, Wuhan, 430200, PR China |
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Abstract: | B, N-codoped carbon nanofibers were massively prepared by heat treatment of electrospun carbon nanofibers with the mixture of boric acid/urea in N2 (BNCf-N) and subsequently activated in NH3 (BNCf-NA). The directly electrospun self-standing 3D non woven structure with void spaces between each fiber facilitates the mass transport of reactant and resulted molecules. Further NH3 activation gives BNCf-NA a high surface area of 306.3 m2 g−1 with micro/mesoporous structure, providing abundant passageway for proton transfer. Simultaneously, NH3 activation also realizes the optimization of surface functionalities, such as more B–N–C and pyridinic-N. These intriguing features render BNCf-NA excellent catalytic behavior with nearly four-electron oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) process in alkaline media, especially much better stability and methanol tolerance than the commercial Pt/C catalyst. Our work provides a large-scale preparation method for efficient metal-free catalysts toward ORR, thus further intensifying the commercial application of fuel cells. |
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Keywords: | Electrospun carbon nanofibers Micro/mesoporous structure Oxygen reduction reaction |
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