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Nano Research 2023, 16(8): 11464-11472 https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-023-5767-y
Research Article | Issue | Published: 13 June 2023

Spatial confinement of zeolitic imidazolate framework deposits by porous carbon nanospheres for dual-atom catalyst towards high-performance oxygen reduction reaction

Show Author's Information Jiayi Zhao1,§,  Ping Li1,§,  Kaicai Fan2,  Wenjie Wei1,  Fenghong Lu1,  Huimin Zhao1,  Bin Li2,  Lingbo Zong1( ),  Lei Wang1( )
Key Laboratory of Eco-chemical Engineering, College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266042, China
College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266042, China

§ Jiayi Zhao and Ping Li contributed equally to this work.

Keywords:
oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), zeolitic imidazolate framework, spatial confinement, porous carbon nanospheres (PCNSs), dual-atom catalyst
Topics:
Oxygen reduction reaction
Cite this article:
Zhao J, Li P, Fan K, et al. Spatial confinement of zeolitic imidazolate framework deposits by porous carbon nanospheres for dual-atom catalyst towards high-performance oxygen reduction reaction. Nano Research, 2023, 16(8): 11464-11472. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-023-5767-y
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Abstract Full text Electronic supplementary material About this article

Dual atom catalysts (DACs), are promising electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) on account of the potential dual-atom active sites for the optimized adsorption of catalytic intermediates and the lower reaction energy barriers. Herein, spatial confinement strategy to fabricate DACs with well-defined Fe, Co dual-atom active site is proposed by implanting zeolitic imidazolate frameworks inside the pores of highly porous carbon nanospheres (Fe/Co-SAs-Nx-PCNSs). The atomically dispersed dual-atom active sites facilitate the adsorption/desorption of intermediates. Furthermore, the spatial confinement effect protects metal atoms aggregating. Benefiting from the rich accessible dual-atom active sites and boosted mass transport, we achieve remarkable ORR performance with half-wave potential up to 0.91 and 0.8 V (vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE)), and long-term stability up to 10 h in both alkaline and acidic electrolytes. The remarkably enhanced ORR catalytic property of our as-developed DACs is in the rank of excellence for 1%. The as-developed rechargeable Zn-air battery (ZAB) with Fe/Co-SAs-Nx-PCNSs air cathode delivers ultrahigh power density of 216 mW·cm−2, outstanding specific capacity of 813 mAh·g−1, and promising cycling operation durability over 160 h. The flexible Zn-air battery also exhibits excellent specific capacity, cycling stability, and flexibility performance. This work opens up a new pathway for the multiscale design of efficient electrocatalysts with atomically dispersed multiple active sites.


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About this article

Spatial confinement of zeolitic imidazolate framework deposits by porous carbon nanospheres for dual-atom catalyst towards high-performance oxygen reduction reaction

Show Author's information Jiayi Zhao1,§, Ping Li1,§, Kaicai Fan2, Wenjie Wei1, Fenghong Lu1, Huimin Zhao1, Bin Li2, Lingbo Zong1( ), Lei Wang1( )
Key Laboratory of Eco-chemical Engineering, College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266042, China
College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266042, China

§ Jiayi Zhao and Ping Li contributed equally to this work.

Abstract

Dual atom catalysts (DACs), are promising electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) on account of the potential dual-atom active sites for the optimized adsorption of catalytic intermediates and the lower reaction energy barriers. Herein, spatial confinement strategy to fabricate DACs with well-defined Fe, Co dual-atom active site is proposed by implanting zeolitic imidazolate frameworks inside the pores of highly porous carbon nanospheres (Fe/Co-SAs-Nx-PCNSs). The atomically dispersed dual-atom active sites facilitate the adsorption/desorption of intermediates. Furthermore, the spatial confinement effect protects metal atoms aggregating. Benefiting from the rich accessible dual-atom active sites and boosted mass transport, we achieve remarkable ORR performance with half-wave potential up to 0.91 and 0.8 V (vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE)), and long-term stability up to 10 h in both alkaline and acidic electrolytes. The remarkably enhanced ORR catalytic property of our as-developed DACs is in the rank of excellence for 1%. The as-developed rechargeable Zn-air battery (ZAB) with Fe/Co-SAs-Nx-PCNSs air cathode delivers ultrahigh power density of 216 mW·cm−2, outstanding specific capacity of 813 mAh·g−1, and promising cycling operation durability over 160 h. The flexible Zn-air battery also exhibits excellent specific capacity, cycling stability, and flexibility performance. This work opens up a new pathway for the multiscale design of efficient electrocatalysts with atomically dispersed multiple active sites.

Keywords: oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), zeolitic imidazolate framework, spatial confinement, porous carbon nanospheres (PCNSs), dual-atom catalyst

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Publication history
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Acknowledgements

Publication history

Received: 18 December 2022
Revised: 31 March 2023
Accepted: 16 April 2023
Published: 13 June 2023
Issue date: August 2023

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© Tsinghua University Press 2023

Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements

This work was supported financially by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 52172208, 52072197, and 21971132) and Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province (No. ZR2019MB042).

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