-60 °C solution synthesis of atomically dispersed cobalt electrocatalyst with superior performance

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrochemistry
• Catalysis

Background:

• Temperature significantly influences material properties during solution synthesis.
• Controlling nucleation kinetics at low temperatures is key to achieving specific material structures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To report a low-temperature solution synthesis method for atomically dispersed cobalt catalysts.
• To demonstrate the superior performance of these catalysts in oxygen reduction reactions and microbial fuel cells.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing a water/alcohol mixed solvent with a low freezing point for synthesis at -60°C.
• Employing liquid-phase reduction of a cobalt precursor with hydrazine hydrate.
• Suppressing nuclei formation by increasing the energy barrier and reducing nucleation rate.

Main Results:

• Successful synthesis of atomically dispersed cobalt within a catalyst structure.
• Achieved electrochemical performance superior to platinum on carbon (Pt/C) catalysts for oxygen reduction.
• Demonstrated high maximum power density (2550 ± 60 mW m⁻²) in microbial fuel cells with stable operation for 820 hours.

Conclusions:

• Low-temperature synthesis is an effective strategy for creating advanced catalysts.
• Atomically dispersed cobalt catalysts exhibit exceptional performance in electrochemical applications.
• The developed catalyst shows great potential for energy conversion technologies like microbial fuel cells.