Cobalt and nitrogen codoped porous carbon as superior bifunctional electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction and hydrogen evolution reaction in alkaline medium

Cobalt and nitrogen codoped carbon materials (Co-N-C) were fabricated by pyrolysis of the mixture of poly(4-vinylpyridine) and cobalt chloride using SiO₂ nanoparticles as hard template, which were the first transition metal/nitrogen-codoped carbon bifunctional electrocatalyst derived from noncarbonizable polymer for ORR and HER. The as-made Co-N-C possessed hierarchical pore structure and high specific surface area, achieving excellent electrocatalytic performances for ORR and HER. Its ORR catalytic performances were comparable to those of Pt/C catalyst and its HER catalytic performances were superior to those of most doped carbon catalysts in KOH electrolyte. Moreover, its bifunctional electrocatalytic performances for ORR and HER were better than those of most bifunctional doped carbon catalysts in alkaline electrolyte.