A review of the development of nitrogen-modified carbon-based catalysts for oxygen reduction at USC

In this review, the development of non-precious nitrogen-modified carbon-based catalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is described, mainly focusing on our research at the University of South Carolina (USC). Metal-free; metal-containing; and template-assisted metal-containing, nitrogen-modified carbon-based catalysts were developed in our group in the past few years. From the characterization and analysis of the synthesized nitrogen-modified carbon-based catalysts, we proposed our viewpoints on the nature of the ORR active sites and performance degradation mechanisms of this type of non-precious metal catalysts. Suggested research and development directions for non-precious nitrogen-modified carbon-based catalysts were also discussed.

[1]  Jong-Won Lee,et al.  Development of high performance carbon composite catalyst for oxygen reduction reaction in PEM Proton Exchange Membrane fuel cells , 2008 .

[2]  Patrick Bertrand,et al.  Molecular Oxygen Reduction in PEM Fuel Cells: Evidence for the Simultaneous Presence of Two Active Sites in Fe-Based Catalysts , 2002 .

[3]  R. Jasinski,et al.  A New Fuel Cell Cathode Catalyst , 1964, Nature.

[4]  Kiyoyuki Terakura,et al.  Carbon Alloy Catalysts: Active Sites for Oxygen Reduction Reaction , 2008 .

[5]  F. Du,et al.  Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Nanotube Arrays with High Electrocatalytic Activity for Oxygen Reduction , 2009, Science.

[6]  Kiyoyuki Terakura,et al.  X-ray absorption analysis of nitrogen contribution to oxygen reduction reaction in carbon alloy cathode catalysts for polymer electrolyte fuel cells , 2009 .

[7]  G. Tamizhmani,et al.  Physical, Chemical and Electrochemical Characterization of Heat-treated Tetracarboxylic Cobalt Phthalocyanine Adsorbed On Carbon-black As Electrocatalyst for Oxygen Reduction in Polymer Electrolyte Fuel-cells , 1995 .

[8]  Ernest Yeager,et al.  Electrocatalysts for O2 reduction , 1984 .

[9]  K. Ota,et al.  Partially oxidized niobium carbonitride as non-platinum cathode for PEFC , 2009 .

[10]  T. Nyokong,et al.  Studies on the heterogeneous electron transport and oxygen reduction reaction at metal (Co, Fe) octabutylsulphonylphthalocyanines supported on multi-walled carbon nanotube modified graphite electrode , 2010 .

[11]  E. Yeager.  Dioxygen electrocatalysis: mechanisms in relation to catalyst structure , 1986 .

[12]  P. Ross,et al.  Surface science studies of model fuel cell electrocatalysts , 2002 .

[13]  J. Dodelet,et al.  Fe-Based Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Reduction in PEMFCs Using Ballmilled Graphite Powder as a Carbon Support , 2008 .

[14]  B. Popov,et al.  Stability Study of Nitrogen-Modified Carbon Composite Catalysts for Oxygen Reduction Reaction in Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells , 2009 .

[15]  Freek Kapteijn,et al.  Evolution of nitrogen functionalities in carbonaceous materials during pyrolysis , 1995 .

[16]  Sebastian Fiechter,et al.  Nature of the Catalytic Centers of Porphyrin-Based Electrocatalysts for the ORR: A Correlation of Kinetic Current Density with the Site Density of Fe−N4 Centers , 2008 .

[17]  P. Ross,et al.  Electrocatalysts by design: from the tailored surface to a commercial catalyst , 2000 .

[18]  Stephen Maldonado,et al.  Direct preparation of carbon nanofiber electrodes via pyrolysis of iron(II) phthalocyanine: Electrocatalytic aspects for oxygen reduction , 2004 .

[19]  Umit S. Ozkan,et al.  The role of nanostructure in nitrogen-containing carbon catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction , 2006 .

[20]  Piotr Zelenay,et al.  A class of non-precious metal composite catalysts for fuel cells , 2006, Nature.

[21]  K. Sawai,et al.  Heat-Treated Transition Metal Hexacyanometallates as Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Reduction Insensitive to Methanol , 2004 .

[22]  I. Abe,et al.  Formation of Platinum-Free Fuel Cell Cathode Catalyst with Highly Developed Nanospace by Carbonizing Catalase , 2005 .

[23]  Alfred B. Anderson,et al.  O2 reduction on graphite and nitrogen-doped graphite: experiment and theory. , 2006, The journal of physical chemistry. B.

[24]  H. Gasteiger,et al.  Activity benchmarks and requirements for Pt, Pt-alloy, and non-Pt oxygen reduction catalysts for PEMFCs , 2005 .

[25]  Frédéric Jaouen,et al.  Average turn-over frequency of O2 electro-reduction for Fe/N/C and Co/N/C catalysts in PEFCs , 2007 .

[26]  K. Yasuda,et al.  Estimation of specific interaction between several Co porphyrins and carbon black: its influence on the electrocatalytic O2 reduction by the porphyrins , 2005 .

[27]  Branko N. Popov,et al.  Studies of oxygen reduction reaction active sites and stability of nitrogen-modified carbon composite catalysts for PEM fuel cells , 2010 .

[28]  David P. Wilkinson,et al.  Electrocatalytic activity and stability of substituted iron phthalocyanines towards oxygen reduction evaluated at different temperatures , 2008 .

[29]  K. Ota,et al.  Zirconium Oxide-Based Compound as New Cathode Without Platinum Group Metals for PEFC , 2010 .

[30]  J. Dahn,et al.  Co-C-N Oxygen Reduction Catalysts Prepared by Combinatorial Magnetron Sputter Deposition , 2006 .

[31]  Branko N. Popov,et al.  Development of non-precious metal oxygen-reduction catalysts for PEM fuel cells based on N-doped ordered porous carbon , 2009 .

[32]  Frédéric Jaouen,et al.  Fe-Based Catalysts for Oxygen Reduction in PEMFCs Importance of the Disordered Phase of the Carbon Support , 2006 .

[33]  J. Marcinkoski,et al.  Progress in the US DOE fuel cell subprogram efforts in polymer electrolyte fuel cells , 2008 .

[34]  K. Wiesener,et al.  N4-chelates as electrocatalyst for cathodic oxygen reduction , 1986 .

[35]  D. Stevens,et al.  Thermally Treated Fe-C-N Oxygen Reduction Catalysts Prepared by Vacuum Deposition , 2006 .

[36]  D. Stevens,et al.  Fuel Cell Studies on a Non-Noble Metal Catalyst Prepared by a Template-Assisted Synthesis Route , 2008 .

[37]  K. Stevenson,et al.  Influence of nitrogen doping on oxygen reduction electrocatalysis at carbon nanofiber electrodes. , 2005, The journal of physical chemistry. B.

[38]  Wenhua Geng,et al.  Analysis of hydrothermally-treated and weathered coals by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) , 2009 .

[39]  Jong-Won Lee,et al.  Nitrogen-modified carbon-based catalysts for oxygen reduction reaction in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells , 2009 .

[40]  Robert F. Savinell,et al.  Heat-treated iron(III) tetramethoxyphenyl porphyrin chloride supported on high-area carbon as an electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction:: Part III. Detection of hydrogen-peroxide during oxygen reduction , 1999 .

[41]  Huamin Zhang,et al.  Preparation, characterization of ZrOxNy/C and its application in PEMFC as an electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction , 2007 .

[42]  Kateryna Artyushkova,et al.  Polyaniline-derived Non-Precious Catalyst for the Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell Cathode , 2008 .

[43]  B. Popov,et al.  Activity and stability of non-precious metal catalysts for oxygen reduction in acid and alkaline electrolytes , 2010 .

[44]  M. Savy,et al.  Oxygen reduction electrocatalysis: ageing of pyrolyzed cobalt macrocycles dispersed on an active carbon , 1999 .

[45]  Wei Xing,et al.  Development of durable carbon black/titanium dioxide supported macrocycle catalysts for oxygen reduction reaction , 2009 .

[46]  Patrick Bertrand,et al.  O-2 reduction in PEM fuel cells: Activity and active site structural information for catalysts obtained by the pyrolysis at high temperature of Fe precursors , 2000 .

[47]  B. Yi,et al.  A novel non-noble electrocatalyst for PEM fuel cell based on molybdenum nitride , 2006 .

[48]  Umit S. Ozkan,et al.  Preparation of nanostructured nitrogen-containing carbon catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction from SiO2- and MgO-supported metal particles , 2006 .