Great enthusiasm in single-atom catalysts (SACs) for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) has been aroused by the discovery of M−N X as a promising ORR catalysis center. However, the performance of SACs lags far behind that of stateof-the-art Pt due to the unsatisfactory adsorption−desorption behaviors of the reported catalytic centers. To address this issue, rational manipulation of the active site configuration toward a well-managed energy level and geometric structure is urgently desired, yet still remains a challenge. Herein, we report a novel strategy to accomplish this task through the construction of an Fe−Co dual-atom centered site. A spontaneously absorbed electron-withdrawing OH ligand was proposed to act proactively as an energy level modifier to empower easy intermediate desorption, while the triangular Fe−Co−OH coordination facilitates O−O bond scission. Benefiting from these attributes, the as-constructed FeCoN 5 −OH site enables an ORR onset potential and half-wave potential of up to 1.02 and 0.86 V (vs RHE), respectively, with an intrinsic activity over 20 times higher than the single-atom FeN 4 site. Our finding not only opens up a novel strategy to tailor the electronic structure of an atomic site toward boosted activity but also provides new insights into the fundamental understanding of diatomic sites for ORR electrocatalysis.
Single‐atom catalysts (SACs) are attracting widespread interest for the catalytic oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), with Fe−Nx SACs exhibiting the most promising activity. However, Fe‐based catalysts suffer serious stability issues as a result of oxidative corrosion through the Fenton reaction. Herein, using a metal‐organic framework as an anchoring matrix, we for the first time obtained pyrolyzed Cr/N/C SACs for the ORR, where the atomically dispersed Cr is confirmed to have a Cr−N4 coordination structure. The Cr/N/C catalyst exhibits excellent ORR activity with an optimal half‐wave potential of 0.773 V versus RHE. More excitingly, the Fenton reaction is substantially reduced and, thus, the final catalysts show superb stability. The innovative and robust active site for the ORR opens a new possibility to circumvent the stability issue of the non‐noble metal ORR catalysts.
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