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Updated: Feb 15, 2026

Synthesis and Performance Characterizations of Transition Metal Single Atom Catalyst for Electrochemical CO2 Reduction
Published on: April 10, 2018
Nitrogen-Coordinated Single Cobalt Atom Catalysts for Oxygen Reduction in Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells
Xiao Xia Wang1,2, David A Cullen3, Yung-Tin Pan4
1Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, NY, 14260, USA.
Abstract:
Due to the Fenton reaction, the presence of Fe and peroxide in electrodes generates free radicals causing serious degradation of the organic ionomer and the membrane. Pt-free and Fe-free cathode catalysts therefore are urgently needed for durable and inexpensive proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). Herein, a high-performance nitrogen-coordinated single Co atom catalyst is derived from Co-doped metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) through a one-step thermal activation. Aberration-corrected electron microscopy combined with X-ray absorption spectroscopy virtually verifies the CoN4 coordination at an atomic level in the catalysts. Through investigating effects of Co doping contents and thermal activation temperature, an atomically Co site dispersed catalyst with optimal chemical and structural properties has achieved respectable activity and stability for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in challenging acidic media (e.g., half-wave potential of 0.80 V vs reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE). The performance is comparable to Fe-based catalysts and 60 mV lower than Pt/C -60 μg Pt cm-2 ). Fuel cell tests confirm that catalyst activity and stability can translate to high-performance cathodes in PEMFCs. The remarkably enhanced ORR performance is attributed to the presence of well-dispersed CoN4 active sites embedded in 3D porous MOF-derived carbon particles, omitting any inactive Co aggregates.
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