Green and Cost-Efficient Synthesis of Bifunctional M-N-C-Type Electrocatalyst

Abstract

Today high-cost Pt-group noble-metal electrocatalysts are still widely applied to effectively overcome the ORR/OER overpotentials.High cost and low abundance alongside poor stability make it necessary to find a replacement for noble-metal-based catalysts to commercialize advanced energy systems successfully. Extensive research of this topic by scientific society resulted in developing various non-noble-metal-based catalysts. Among the recently developed materials, M-N-C catalysts demonstrate great catalytic activity and extraordinary stability, low cost, and a wide variety of sources, making them excellent candidates for replacing Pt-based catalysts.Currently, the most commonly used method for producing M-N-C type catalysts is the carbonization of the precursor material or wet-impregnation of the precursor on carbon support with subsequent carbonization. Additionally, currently available processes often do not meet the current environmental requirements, and the majority of methods are energy-demanding.Here we present a new concept of a facile green method of large-scale synthesis of M-N-C type catalysts with bifunctional electroactivity towards oxygen reduction and evolution reactions.