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Ultrastable bimetallic Fe2Mo for efficient oxygen reduction reaction in pH-universal applications

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Abstract

Iron-based nanostructures represent an emerging class of catalysts with high electroactivity for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in energy storage and conversion technologies. However, current practical applications have been limited by insufficient durability in both alkaline and acidic environments. In particular, limited attention has been paid to stabilizing iron-based catalysts by introducing additional metal by the alloying effect. Herein, we report bimetallic Fe2Mo nanoparticles on N-doped carbon (Fe2Mo/NC) as an efficient and ultra-stable ORR electrocatalyst for the first time. The Fe2Mo/NC catalyst shows high selectivity for a four-electron pathway of ORR and remarkable electrocatalytic activity with high kinetics current density and half-wave potential as well as low Tafel slope in both acidic and alkaline medias. It demonstrates excellent long-term durability with no activity loss even after 10,000 potential cycles. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations have confirmed the modulated electronic structure of formed Fe2Mo, which supports the electron-rich structure for the ORR process. Meanwhile, the mutual protection between Fe and Mo sites guarantees efficient electron transfer and long-term stability, especially under the alkaline environment. This work has supplied an effective strategy to solve the dilemma between high electroactivity and long-term durability for the Fe-based electrocatalysts, which opens a new direction of developing novel electrocatalyst systems for future research.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (2021YFA1501101), the National Nature Science Foundation of China (Nos. 21862011, 21771156, and 51864024) and Yunnan province (No. 2019FI003), the Shenzhen Knowledge Innovation Program (Basic Research, No. JCYJ20190808181205752), the Research Grants Council (RGC) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (Project No. CityU 11206520), the National Natural Science Foundation of China/RGC Joint Research Scheme (N_PolyU502/21), and the funding for Projects of Strategic Importance of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (Project Code: 1-ZE2V).

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  1. Jue Hu and Chengxu Zhang contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Engineering Laboratory of Advanced Battery and Materials of Yunnan Province, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, China

    Jue Hu, Chengxu Zhang, Qianglong Qi, Shanxiong Luo & Yingjie Zhang

  2. Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China

    Mingzi Sun & Bolong Huang

  3. School of Energy and Environment Science, Yunnan Normal University, Kunming, China

    Hongchuan Song

  4. Ability R&D Energy Research Centre, School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China

    Jingyi Xiao & Michael K. H. Leung

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  1. Jue Hu
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Hu, J., Zhang, C., Sun, M. et al. Ultrastable bimetallic Fe2Mo for efficient oxygen reduction reaction in pH-universal applications. Nano Res. 15, 4950–4957 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-022-4112-1

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