Abstract
Heteroatom-doped porous carbons are considered as one of the most promising metal-free electrocatalysts for highly efficient electrocatalytic reactions. Herein, nitrogen and sulfur co-doped mesoporous hollow carbon microspheres are fabricated using a feasible process involving the pyrolysis of polydopamine in the presence of sodium 1,5-naphthalenedisulfonate (1,5-NDSNa) and the use of mesoporous silica SBA-15 as hard template. The resultant carbon microspheres have a well-developed hierarchical porosity with large surface area, showing high-efficiency electrochemical oxygen reduction activity in alkaline media, along with much enhanced stability and methanol tolerance, as compared with those of commercial platinum catalysts. The superior electrocatalytic performance and stability of the catalyst might be due to the synergistic effect between N and S elements and the well-defined meso- and macroporosity, presenting great potential in the fields of fuel cells and metal-air batteries.
Nitrogen and sulfur co-doped mesoporous hollow carbon microspheres are fabricated using a feasible process, exhibiting high-efficiency electrocatalytic oxygen reduction activity, along with much enhanced stability and methanol tolerance. [Display omitted]
•Heteroatoms N and S homogenously incorporated into porous carbon framework for efficient electrocatalysis.•A feasible acid-base interaction and hard template strategy for fabrication of the heteroatom-doped electrocatalysts.•The heteroatom-doped electrocatalyst showed excellent activity with high stability in the ORR.