Developing an advanced electrocatalyst derived from Ce(TTA)3Phen embedded polyaniline for oxygen reduction reaction

The search for non-precious-metal catalysts with low cost, high activity and stability to substitute Pt in oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) attracts tremendous attention. Herein, novel ORR electrocatalysts of cerium species embedded N-doped carbon (CENC) materials are prepared by the chemical oxidative polymerization and pyrolysis methods, using polyaniline-coated cerium organic complex (Ce(TTA)₃Phen) as the precursor. The experimental results have revealed that the electrocatalytic activity of the obtained electrocatalysts for ORR is affected by the pyrolysis temperature. Remarkably, the as-prepared CENC-1000 exhibits a good catalytic activity in terms of limiting current density, onset potential and half wave potential, as well as superior tolerance to methanol crossover for ORR as comparable to commercial Pt/C in alkaline media. The high performance is attributed to the introduction of nitrogen active sites and Ce active species (generated from the pyrolysis of CENC precursor), which endow CENC-1000 with enhanced electrocatalytic activity. This approach makes CENC-1000 a promising candidate as cathode catalyst in renewable energy conversion devices.