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Title: Progress in the Development of Fe-Based PGM-Free Electrocatalysts for the Oxygen Reduction Reaction

Journal Article · · Advanced Materials

Development of alternative energy sources is crucial to tackle challenges encountered by the growing global energy demand. Hydrogen fuel, a promising way to store energy produced from renewable power sources, can be converted into electrical energy at high efficiency via direct electrochemical conversion in fuel cells, releasing water as the sole byproduct. One important drawback to current fuel-cell technology is the high content of platinum-group-metal (PGM) electrocatalysts required to perform the sluggish oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Addressing this challenge, remarkable progress has been made in the development of low-cost PGM-free electrocatalysts synthesized from inexpensive, earth-abundant, and easily sourced materials such as iron, nitrogen, and carbon (Fe–N–C). PGM-free Fe–N–C electrocatalysts now exhibit ORR activities approaching that of PGM electrocatalysts but at a fraction of the cost, promising to significantly reduce overall fuel-cell technology costs. Here in this paper, recent developments in PGM-free electrocatalysis, demonstrating increased fuel-cell performance, as well as efforts aimed at understanding the key limiting factor, i.e., the nature of the PGM-free active site, are summarized. Further improvements will be accomplished through the controlled and/or rationally designed synthesis of materials with higher active-site densities, while at the same time establishing methods to mitigate catalyst degradation.

Research Organization:
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). Fuel Cell Technologies Program (EE-3F); USDOE
Grant/Contract Number:
89233218CNA000001
OSTI ID:
1499359
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1495531
Report Number(s):
LA-UR-18-29583
Journal Information:
Advanced Materials, Vol. 31, Issue 31; ISSN 0935-9648
Publisher:
WileyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 330 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Enhancing the production of hydrogen peroxide from electrocatalytic oxygen reduction reaction by tailoring the electronic states of single-walled carbon nanotubes: a synergistic effect from interior filling and exterior oxidation journal January 2019
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Boosting the hydrogen evolution activity of a Co–N–C electrocatalyst by codoping with Al journal January 2019
Oxygen Reduction Reactions on Single‐ or Few‐Atom Discrete Active Sites for Heterogeneous Catalysis journal September 2019
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Experimental and Theoretical Trends of PGM-Free Electrocatalysts for the Oxygen Reduction Reaction with Different Transition Metals journal January 2019
A ZIF-derived hierarchically porous Fe–Zn–N–C catalyst synthesized via a two-stage pyrolysis for the highly efficient oxygen reduction reaction in both acidic and alkaline media journal January 2019
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