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Vol. 12 (2020)

A Porous Nano-Micro-Composite as a High-Performance Bi-Functional Air Electrode with Remarkable Stability for Rechargeable Zinc–Air Batteries

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-020-00468-4
Yasir Arafat
WA School of Mines: Minerals, Energy and Chemical Engineering (WASM‑MECE), Curtin University, Perth, WA 6845, Australia
Muhammad Rizwan Azhar
WA School of Mines: Minerals, Energy and Chemical Engineering (WASM‑MECE), Curtin University, Perth, WA 6845, Australia
Yijun Zhong
WA School of Mines: Minerals, Energy and Chemical Engineering (WASM‑MECE), Curtin University, Perth, WA 6845, Australia
Xiaomin Xu
WA School of Mines: Minerals, Energy and Chemical Engineering (WASM‑MECE), Curtin University, Perth, WA 6845, Australia
Moses O. Tadé
WA School of Mines: Minerals, Energy and Chemical Engineering (WASM‑MECE), Curtin University, Perth, WA 6845, Australia
Zongping Shao
WA School of Mines: Minerals, Energy and Chemical Engineering (WASM‑MECE), Curtin University, Perth, WA 6845, Australia

Corresponding Author: Zongping Shao

zongping.shao@curtin.edu.au

Nano-Micro Letters, Vol. 12 (2020), Article Number: 130

Abstract

The development of bi-functional electrocatalyst with high catalytic activity and stable performance for both oxygen evolution/reduction reactions (OER/ORR) in aqueous alkaline solution is key to realize practical application of zinc–air batteries (ZABs). In this study, we reported a new porous nano-micro-composite as a bi-functional electrocatalyst for ZABs, devised by the in situ growth of metal–organic framework (MOF) nanocrystals onto the micrometer-sized Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3 (BSCF) perovskite oxide. Upon carbonization, MOF was converted to porous nitrogen-doped carbon nanocages and ultrafine cobalt oxides and CoN4 nanoparticles dispersing inside the carbon nanocages, which further anchored on the surface of BSCF oxide. We homogeneously dispersed BSCF perovskite particles in the surfactant; subsequently, ZIF-67 nanocrystals were grown onto the BSCF particles. In this way, leaching of metallic or organic species in MOFs and the aggregation of BSCF were effectively suppressed, thus maximizing the number of active sites for improving OER. The BSCF in turn acted as catalyst to promote the graphitization of carbon during pyrolysis, as well as to optimize the transition metal-to-carbon ratio, thus enhancing the ORR catalytic activity. A ZAB fabricated from such air electrode showed outstanding performance with a potential gap of only 0.83 V at 5 mA cm−2 for OER/ORR. Notably, no obvious performance degradation was observed for the continuous charge–discharge operation for 1800 cycles over an extended period of 300 h.


Highlights:


1 A novel high-performance bi-functional electrocatalyst was fabricated by in situ growth of ZIF-67 polyhedrons onto Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3 (BSCF) particles.
2 Strong coupling between different phases endowed the robust structure to the composite, which translated into stable charging/discharging operation for 300 h. And the new interfacial phases significantly promoted the catalytic activity, stability and electrical conductivity.

Keywords

BSCF perovskites ZIF-67 Porous carbon Zn–air batteries Oxygen evolution reaction Oxygen reduction reaction
Arafat, Yasir, Muhammad Rizwan Azhar, Yijun Zhong, Xiaomin Xu, Moses O. Tadé, and Zongping Shao. 2020. “A Porous Nano-Micro-Composite As a High-Performance Bi-Functional Air Electrode With Remarkable Stability for Rechargeable Zinc–Air Batteries”. Nano-Micro Letters 12 (June):130. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-020-00468-4.
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