Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Porous hollow carbon tube derived from kapok fibres as efficient metal-free oxygen reduction catalysts

  • Article
  • Published:
Science China Technological Sciences Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Pyrogenic biomass carbon has been deemed a promising alternative to Pt/C for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) owing to its low cost, excellent activity, and eco-friendly properties. Herein, a porous carbon tube material derived from kapok fibres was prepared by combining activation with pyrolysis. Electrochemical measurements demonstrated that the kapok fibre-derived material prepared at 900°C had excellent ORR performance with a half-wave potential −0.14 V (vs. Ag/AgCl) close to that of commercial Pt/C (−0.13 V vs. Ag/AgCl) in 0.1 mol L−1 KOH. The prepared material also displayed remarkable methanol tolerance and durability. Furthermore, the maximum power density output of the microbial fuel cell using the prepared material was (801±40) mW m−2, comparable to that of the Pt/C cathode ((778±31) mW m−2). The present work provides a facile way of using economical and renewable biomass to develop a porous structure and high-activity cathode ORR catalyst for fuel cell applications.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Guo S, Zhang S, Sun S. Tuning nanoparticle catalysis for the oxygen reduction reaction. Angew Chem Int Ed, 2013, 52: 8526–8544

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Guo D, Shibuya R, Akiba C, et al. Active sites of nitrogen-doped carbon materials for oxygen reduction reaction clarified using model catalysts. Science, 2016, 351: 361–365

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Li Y, Gong M, Liang Y, et al. Advanced zinc-air batteries based on high-performance hybrid electrocatalysts. Nat Commun, 2013, 4: 1805

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Zheng B, Wang J, Wang F B, et al. Low-loading cobalt coupled with nitrogen-doped porous graphene as excellent electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction reaction. J Mater Chem A, 2014, 2: 9079–9084

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Choi C H, Kwon H C, Yook S, et al. Hydrogen peroxide synthesis via enhanced two-electron oxygen reduction pathway on carbon-coated Pt surface. J Phys Chem C, 2014, 118: 30063–30070

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Zhang X, Lu P, Zhang C, et al. Towards understanding ORR activity and electron-transfer pathway of M-Nx/C electro-catalyst in acidic media. J Catal, 2017, 356: 229–236

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Liu X W, Li W W, Yu H Q. Cathodic catalysts in bioelectrochemical systems for energy recovery from wastewater. Chem Soc Rev, 2014, 43: 7718–7745

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Xiong W, Du F, Liu Y, et al. 3-D carbon nanotube structures used as high performance catalyst for oxygen reduction reaction. J Am Chem Soc, 2010, 132: 15839–15841

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Wu G, More K L, Xu P, et al. A carbon-nanotube-supported graphenerich non-precious metal oxygen reduction catalyst with enhanced performance durability. Chem Commun, 2013, 49: 3291–3293

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Gong K, Du F, Xia Z, et al. Nitrogen-doped carbon nanotube arrays with high electrocatalytic activity for oxygen reduction. Science, 2009, 323: 760–764

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Li Y, Zhou W, Wang H, et al. An oxygen reduction electrocatalyst based on carbon nanotube-graphene complexes. Nat Nanotech, 2012, 7: 394–400

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Fu P, Zhou L, Sun L, et al. Nitrogen-doped porous activated carbon derived from cocoon silk as a highly efficient metal-free electro-catalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction. RSC Adv, 2017, 7: 13383–13389

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Zhou L, Fu P, Wen D, et al. Self-constructed carbon nanoparticles-coated porous biocarbon from plant moss as advanced oxygen reduction catalysts. Appl Catal B-Environ, 2016, 181: 635–643

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Bhange S N, Unni S M, Kurungot S. Nitrogen and sulphur co-doped crumbled graphene for the oxygen reduction reaction with improved activity and stability in acidic medium. J Mater Chem A, 2016, 4: 6014–6020

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Neaţu F, Trandafir M M, Marcu M, et al. Potential application of Ni and Co stabilized zirconia as oxygen reduction reaction catalyst. Catal Commun, 2017, 93: 37–42

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Zhou L, Yang C, Wen J, et al. Soft-template assisted synthesis of Fe/N-doped hollow carbon nanospheres as advanced electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction in microbial fuel cells. J Mater Chem A, 2017, 5: 19343–19350

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Lee S, Kwak D H, Han S B, et al. Synthesis of hollow carbon nanostructures as a non-precious catalyst for oxygen reduction reaction. Electrochim Acta, 2016, 191: 805–812

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Liu L, Yin Y X, Li J Y, et al. Free-standing hollow carbon fibers as high-capacity containers for stable lithium metal anodes. Joule, 2017, 1: 563–575

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Guan B Y, Yu L, Lou X W D. Formation of single-holed cobalt/N-doped carbon hollow particles with enhanced electrocatalytic activity toward oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline media. Adv Sci, 2017, 4: 1700247

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Wang Y, Kong A, Chen X, et al. Efficient oxygen electroreduction: Hierarchical porous Fe-N-doped hollow carbon nanoshells. ACS Catal, 2015, 5: 3887–3893

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Chabot V, Higgins D, Yu A, et al. A review of graphene and graphene oxide sponge: Material synthesis and applications to energy and the environment. Energy Environ Sci, 2014, 7: 1564–1596

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Borghei M, Lehtonen J, Liu L, et al. Advanced biomass-derived electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction. Adv Mater, 2017, 30: 1703691

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Niu J, Shao R, Liang J, et al. Biomass-derived mesopore-dominant porous carbons with large specific surface area and high defect density as high performance electrode materials for Li-ion batteries and supercapacitors. Nano Energy, 2017, 36: 322–330

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Si Y, Chen M, Wu L. Syntheses and biomedical applications of hollow micro-/nano-spheres with large-through-holes. Chem Soc Rev, 2015, 45: 690–714

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Yuan Y, Zhou S, Zhuang L. Polypyrrole/carbon black composite as a novel oxygen reduction catalyst for microbial fuel cells. J Power Sources, 2010, 195: 3490–3493

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Deng L, Yuan Y, Zhang Y, et al. Alfalfa leaf-derived porous heteroatom-doped carbon materials as efficient cathodic catalysts in microbial fuel cells. ACS Sustain Chem Eng, 2017, 5: 9766–9773

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Deng L, Yuan H, Cai X, et al. Honeycomb-like hierarchical carbon derived from livestock sewage sludge as oxygen reduction reaction catalysts in microbial fuel cells. Int J Hydrogen Energy, 2016, 41: 22328–22336

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Yuan H, Deng L, Cai X, et al. Nitrogen-doped carbon sheets derived from chitin as non-metal bifunctional electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction and evolution. RSC Adv, 2015, 5: 56121–56129

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Yuan Y, Yuan T, Wang D, et al. Sewage sludge biochar as an efficient catalyst for oxygen reduction reaction in an microbial fuel cell. Bioresour Tech, 2013, 144: 115–120

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Shen W, Hu T, Wang P, et al. Hollow porous carbon fiber from cotton with nitrogen doping. ChemPlusChem, 2014, 79: 284–289

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Zhu H, Wang H, Li Y, et al. Lightweight, conductive hollow fibers from nature as sustainable electrode materials for microbial energy harvesting. Nano Energy, 2014, 10: 268–276

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Cao Y, Xie L, Sun G, et al. Hollow carbon microtubes from kapok fiber: Structural evolution and energy storage performance. Sustain Energy Fuels, 2018, 2: 455–465

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Caturla F, Molina-Sabio M, Rodríguez-Reinoso F. Preparation of activated carbon by chemical activation with ZnCl2. Carbon, 1991, 29: 999–1007

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Liu J, Wang S, Yang J, et al. ZnCl2 activated electrospun carbon nanofiber for capacitive desalination. Desalination, 2014, 344: 446–453

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Yang S, Zhi L, Tang K, et al. Efficient synthesis of heteroatom (N or S)-doped graphene based on ultrathin graphene oxide-porous silica sheets for oxygen reduction reactions. Adv Funct Mater, 2012, 22: 3634–3640

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Yu H, Shang L, Bian T, et al. Nitrogen-doped porous carbon nanosheets templated from g-C3N4 as metal-free electrocatalysts for efficient oxygen reduction reaction. Adv Mater, 2016, 28: 5080–5086

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Tang J, Chen S, Yuan Y, et al. In situ formation of graphene layers on graphite surfaces for efficient anodes of microbial fuel cells. Biosens Bioelectron, 2015, 71: 387–395

    Article  Google Scholar 

  38. Yang X, Zou W, Su Y, et al. Activated nitrogen-doped carbon nanofibers with hierarchical pore as efficient oxygen reduction reaction catalyst for microbial fuel cells. J Power Sources, 2014, 266: 36–42

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. Li Z Q, Lu C J, Xia Z P, et al. X-ray diffraction patterns of graphite and turbostratic carbon. Carbon, 2007, 45: 1686–1695

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Turneaure S J, Sharma S M, Volz T J, et al. Transformation of shock-compressed graphite to hexagonal diamond in nanoseconds. Sci Adv, 2017, 3: eaao3561

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. Claesson P M, Wal A V D, Fogden A. New Techniques for Optimization of Particulate Cleaning. Handbook for Cleaning/decontamination of Surfaces. 2007. 885–927

  42. Scardamaglia M, Aleman B, Amati M, et al. Nitrogen implantation of suspended graphene flakes: Annealing effects and selectivity of sp2 nitrogen species. Carbon, 2014, 73: 371–381

    Article  Google Scholar 

  43. Tian X, Sun X, Jiang Z, et al. Exploration of the active center structure of nitrogen-doped graphene to control over the growth of Co3O4 for high-performance supercapacitor. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces, 2018, 1: 143–153

    Google Scholar 

  44. Datsyuk V, Kalyva M, Papagelis K, et al. Chemical oxidation of multiwalled carbon nanotubes. Carbon, 2008, 46: 833–840

    Article  Google Scholar 

  45. Tang J, Yuan Y, Liu T, et al. High-capacity carbon-coated titanium dioxide core-shell nanoparticles modified three dimensional anodes for improved energy output in microbial fuel cells. J Power Sources, 2015, 274: 170–176

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Postdoctoral Fund of China (Grant No. 2017M622042), the Fujian Provincial Department of Science and Technology of China (Grant No. 2017N0007), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41601241), and the Key Research & Developement Plan of Fujian Province (Grant No. 2017NZ0001-1). We also thank postdoctoral researcher YUAN HaiJing and Dr. RENSING Christopher at Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University for revising the manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Soil Environmental Health and Regulation, College of Resources and Environment, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, 350002, China

    JiaHuan Tang, YaJun Wang, WenQi Zhao, WenYuan Ye & ShunGui Zhou

Authors
  1. JiaHuan Tang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. YaJun Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. WenQi Zhao
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. WenYuan Ye
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. ShunGui Zhou
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to ShunGui Zhou.

Additional information

Supporting Information

The supporting information is available online at tech.scichina.com and link.springer.com. The supporting materials are published as submitted, without typesetting or editing. The responsibility for scientific accuracy and content remains entirely with the authors.

Electronic supplementary material

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Tang, J., Wang, Y., Zhao, W. et al. Porous hollow carbon tube derived from kapok fibres as efficient metal-free oxygen reduction catalysts. Sci. China Technol. Sci. 62, 1710–1718 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11431-018-9453-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11431-018-9453-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation