Exploring Fibrin Protein Hydrogels for the Production of Heteroatom-Doped Porous Carbon Nanoarchitectures as Efficient Metal-Free Oxygen Reduction Reaction Catalysts

Woong Ju Kim, Sun Hee Choi, Se In Kim, Ji Woong Choi, Jin Gu Kang, Dong Wan Kim

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Although protein hydrogels are excellent carbonization precursors for synthesizing carbon nanoarchitectures as efficient metal-free oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalysts, research on this topic has rarely been conducted. In this study, fibrin protein hydrogels templated with sodium chloride (NaCl) crystals are proposed as novel precursors for the manufacture of heteroatom-doped planar carbon nanostructures containing internal pores. By systematically adjusting the carbonization conditions, it is revealed that their effects on material properties and ORR characteristics. The catalyst carbonized at 900°C for 12 hr demonstrated excellent performances in an alkaline solution, including onset potential (Eon; 0.86 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode), diffusion-limited current (-4.0 mA cm-2 at 0.05 V), electron transfer number (2.84), and durability (-18 mV shift in Eon after 30,000 cycles). This is attributed to the synergistic action of fast out-of-plane electron transport, sufficient adsorption sites, enhanced activity by heteroatom doping, and effective mass transfer through interconnected pores.

Original languageEnglish
Article number5045240
JournalInternational Journal of Energy Research
Volume2024
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Woong-Ju Kim et al.

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
  • Nuclear Energy and Engineering
  • Fuel Technology
  • Energy Engineering and Power Technology

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