N-Doped Porous Carbon from Sargassum spp. as Efficient Metal-Free Electrocatalysts for O2 Reduction in Alkaline Fuel Cells

This work reports the synthesis of N-doped porous carbon (NPC) with a high surface area from Sargassum spp. as a low-cost alternative for electrocatalyst production for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Sargassum spp. was activated with potassium hydroxide at different temperatures (700, 750, and 800 °C) and then doped with pyridine (N700, N750, and N800). As a result of the activation process, the 800 °C sample showed a high surface area (2765 m2 g−1) and good onset potential (0.870 V) and current density (4.87 mA cm−2). The ORR performance of the electrocatalysts in terms of their current density was N800 > N750 > N700 > 750 > 800 > 700, while the onset potential decreased in the following order: N800 > 800 > 750 > 700 > N700 > N750. The fuel cell performance of the membrane electrode assembly (MEA) prepared with electrocatalyst synthesized at 750 °C and doped with pyridine was 12.72 mW cm−2, which was close to that from Pt/C MEA on both the anode and cathode (14.42 mW cm−2). These results indicate that NPCs are an alternative to the problem of Sargassum spp. accumulation in the Caribbean due to their high efficiency as electrocatalysts for ORR.

[1]  B. Escobar,et al.  Self-doped Sargassum spp. derived biocarbon as electrocatalysts for ORR in alkaline media , 2019, International Journal of Hydrogen Energy.

[2]  Bela H. Buck,et al.  State of the Art and Challenges for Offshore Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) , 2018, Front. Mar. Sci..

[3]  Feng Wang,et al.  Metal-free nitrogen-doped porous carbons derived from pomelo peel treated by hypersaline environments for oxygen reduction reaction , 2018 .

[4]  Qiang Zhang,et al.  Ultrahigh Oxygen Reduction Reaction Electrocatalytic Activity and Stability over Hierarchical Nanoporous N-doped Carbon , 2018, Scientific Reports.

[5]  Lina Gao,et al.  Nitrogen doped lotus stem carbon as electrocatalyst comparable to Pt/C for oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline media , 2017 .

[6]  Changguo Chen,et al.  Protein-enriched fish “biowaste” converted to three-dimensional porous carbon nano-network for advanced oxygen reduction electrocatalysis , 2017 .

[7]  Pio Colepicolo,et al.  The floating Sargassum (Phaeophyceae) of the South Atlantic Ocean – likely scenarios , 2017 .

[8]  Y. Shioi,et al.  Analysis of Pigment Composition of Brown Seaweeds Collected from Panjang Island , Central Java , Indonesia , 2017 .

[9]  F. J. Rodríguez-Varela,et al.  Novel self-nitrogen-doped porous carbon from waste leather as highly active metal-free electrocatalyst for the ORR , 2016 .

[10]  F. J. Maldonado-Hódar,et al.  Free metal oxygen-reduction electro-catalysts obtained from biomass residue of the olive oil industry , 2016 .

[11]  Hao Yu,et al.  From chicken feather to nitrogen and sulfur co-doped large surface bio-carbon flocs: an efficient electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction reaction , 2016 .

[12]  S. Liao,et al.  Biomass-derived porous heteroatom-doped carbon spheres as a high-performance catalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction , 2016 .

[13]  R. S. Chutia,et al.  Sustainable synthesis of N and P co-doped porous amorphous carbon using oil seed processing wastes , 2016 .

[14]  L. Legendre,et al.  Growth responses of Ulva prolifera to inorganic and organic nutrients: Implications for macroalgal blooms in the southern Yellow Sea, China , 2016, Scientific Reports.

[15]  Huanlei Wang,et al.  N, O-codoped hierarchical porous carbons derived from algae for high-capacity supercapacitors and battery anodes , 2016 .

[16]  Haitao Liu,et al.  Scalable and Cost-Effective Synthesis of Highly Efficient Fe2N-Based Oxygen Reduction Catalyst Derived from Seaweed Biomass. , 2016, Small.

[17]  M. Titirici,et al.  The influence of pore size distribution on the oxygen reduction reaction performance in nitrogen doped carbon microspheres , 2016 .

[18]  Shungui Zhou,et al.  Self-constructed carbon nanoparticles-coated porous biocarbon from plant moss as advanced oxygen reduction catalysts , 2016 .

[19]  F. J. Rodríguez-Varela,et al.  Communication—Synthesis of Self-Doped Metal-Free Electrocatalysts from Waste Leather with High ORR Activity , 2016 .

[20]  Y. Verde-Gómez,et al.  Nitrogen self-doped electrocatalysts synthesized by pyrolysis of commercial polymer fibers for oxygen reduction reaction , 2015 .

[21]  S. Ji,et al.  Pig bones derived N-doped carbon with multi-level pores as electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction , 2015 .

[22]  W. Schuhmann,et al.  Nitrogen-doped carbon cloth as a stable self-supported cathode catalyst for air/H2-breathing alkaline fuel cells , 2015 .

[23]  Changguo Chen,et al.  Easy conversion of protein-rich enoki mushroom biomass to a nitrogen-doped carbon nanomaterial as a promising metal-free catalyst for oxygen reduction reaction. , 2015, Nanoscale.

[24]  Y. Fujimoto.  Formation, Energetics, and Electronic Properties of Graphene Monolayer and Bilayer Doped with Heteroatoms , 2015 .

[25]  J. Schell,et al.  Recent Sargassum Inundation Events in the Caribbean: Shipboard Observations Reveal Dominance of a Previously Rare Form , 2015 .

[26]  Tao An,et al.  Oxygen Reduction in Alkaline Media: From Mechanisms to Recent Advances of Catalysts , 2015 .

[27]  Changguo Chen,et al.  High content of pyridinic- and pyrrolic-nitrogen-modified carbon nanotubes derived from blood biomass for the electrocatalysis of oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline medium , 2015 .

[28]  Changguo Chen,et al.  Exploration of the catalytically active site structures of animal biomass-modified on cheap carbon nanospheres for oxygen reduction reaction with high activity, stability and methanol-tolerant performance in alkaline medium , 2015 .

[29]  S. Ji,et al.  The enhanced electrocatalytic activity of okara-derived N-doped mesoporous carbon for oxygen reduction reaction , 2015 .

[30]  Jianji Wang,et al.  Transforming organic-rich amaranthus waste into nitrogen-doped carbon with superior performance of the oxygen reduction reaction , 2015 .

[31]  Changguo Chen,et al.  Design of a non-precious metal electrocatalyst for alkaline electrolyte oxygen reduction by using soybean biomass as the nitrogen source of electrocatalytically active center structures , 2014 .

[32]  Jie Yu,et al.  Nitrogen-doped activated carbon with micrometer-scale channels derived from luffa sponge fibers as electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction with high stability in acidic media , 2014 .

[33]  S. Liao,et al.  High-Performance Doped Carbon Catalyst Derived from Nori Biomass with Melamine Promoter , 2014 .

[34]  Steven Pratt,et al.  Composting of waste algae: a review. , 2014, Waste management.

[35]  D. Bhattacharjya,et al.  Seaweed-derived heteroatom-doped highly porous carbon as an electrocatalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction. , 2014, ChemSusChem.

[36]  D. A. Bolaji,et al.  Impacts of an invasive seaweed Sargassum hystrix var. fluitans (Børgesen 1914) on the fisheries and other economic implications for the Nigerian coastal waters. , 2014 .

[37]  C. Bonnebat,et al.  Formation and characterization of crosslinked membranes for alkaline fuel cells , 2009 .

[38]  Jürgen Garche,et al.  Encyclopedia of electrochemical power sources , 2009 .

[39]  S. Srinivasan,et al.  Fuel Cells: From Fundamentals to Applications , 2006 .

[40]  U. Niermann.  Distribution ofSargassum natans and some of its epibionts in the Sargasso Sea , 1986, Helgoländer Meeresuntersuchungen.

[41]  Seongyop Lim,et al.  KOH activation of carbon nanofibers , 2004 .

[42]  Michael Mangan,et al.  Alkaline fuel cells for road traction , 1999 .

[43]  G. Leofanti,et al.  Surface area and pore texture of catalysts , 1998 .

[44]  G. Scherer.  Polymer Membranes for Fuel Cells , 1990 .

[45]  S. S. Penner,et al.  Assessment of Research Needs for Advanced Fuel Cells , 1985 .

[46]  Charles W. Tobias,et al.  The solubility and diffusion coefficient of oxygen in potassium hydroxide solutions , 1967 .